Disney, Adobe to co-develop custom AI models tailored for media giant

The alliance will deploy Adobe technology across Disney's innovation labs, theme park and cruise development pipelines, and media production, using custom AI models to help teams develop ideas more quickly while protecting creators and their works. According to Hannah Elsakr, vice president of GenAI New Business Ventures at Adobe, the partnership will build "a new creative foundation that thoughtfully deploys AI as an accelerant for artistic vision, creativity and guest engagement."

Disney will gain early access to Adobe's latest AI technologies, including Adobe Firefly (generative AI for creatives), Adobe Firefly Foundry (proprietary AI models), Adobe Premiere (video editing), and Adobe Photoshop (digital imaging). The Firefly Foundry platform will enable Disney to work directly with Adobe on generative AI models tailored to Disney's properties, trained on unique world knowledge such as character attributes, environments, and visual styles to generate commercially safe, production-ready outputs.

Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development is already using Adobe Firefly Foundry to accelerate the theme park development pipeline. Current applications include a sketch-to-image model that transforms hand-drawn concepts into fully rendered 2D concept art, and a custom image model that generates on-brand, franchise-accurate creative assets.

The partnership extends to StudioLAB, Disney's collaborative innovation hub for The Walt Disney Studios, where Adobe joins as a StudioLAB Innovation Partner to explore and expand internal creative workflows. Additionally, Disney's ESPN Edge Innovation Center will collaborate with Adobe to identify ways for AI to enhance fan engagement and shape how ESPN delivers content, including new ways to bring ESPN's archive to life.

Becca Vodnoy, senior vice president of Corporate Alliances at The Walt Disney Company, noted that "By bringing together Disney's world-class storytellers and beloved brands with Adobe's technology, we have an exciting opportunity to give our creative teams new ways to explore and develop their ideas and bring Disney stories and experiences to life for guests and fans around the world."

The alliance includes global marketing activations, industry event collaborations, customer storytelling, and other strategic engagement opportunities across Disney's resorts, cruise line, ESPN Edge, and StudioLAB. Co-innovation projects are already underway, with additional activations and experiences planned to roll out over the multi-year term of the partnership.