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

The Walt Disney Company and Adobe unveiled a multi-year strategic alliance on November 9, 2026, at Adobe MAX in Miami Beach, making Adobe the Official AI Innovation Partner of Disney. The partnership centers on Adobe Firefly Foundry, a proprietary generative AI platform that will be used to build custom models trained on Disney's unique world knowledge — character attributes, environments, and visual styles — to produce commercially safe, production-ready outputs. According to the Adobe Newsroom release, these models are designed to be human-centered and artist-led, accelerating creative workflows while protecting creators and their works.

Disney's creative teams will gain early access to Adobe's latest AI, creative, and media technologies, including Firefly, Premiere, and Photoshop, along with dedicated engineering and research resources. Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development is already using Firefly Foundry in its theme park development pipeline, employing a sketch-to-image model that turns hand-drawn concepts into fully rendered 2D concept art and a custom image model that generates on-brand, franchise-accurate assets. The Verge reported that the partnership will give Disney "early access" to AI tech for its resorts, cruise line, ESPN graphics, and more.

The alliance extends to The Walt Disney Studios' StudioLAB, where Adobe joins as a StudioLAB Innovation Partner to collaborate with Disney creatives and technologists on prototyping ideas and expanding internal creative workflows. At ESPN Edge, the companies will identify ways for AI to enhance sports fan engagement, shape content delivery, and bring ESPN's archive to life. Adobe will also increase its presence across Disney's media platforms, with co-innovation projects already underway and additional activations planned for Adobe Summit, Adobe MAX, and other industry conferences over the multi-year term.

Hannah Elsakr, vice president of GenAI New Business Ventures at Adobe, said the announcement marks "the next chapter of the relationship, where the two companies will build a new creative foundation that thoughtfully deploys AI as an accelerant for artistic vision, creativity and guest engagement." Becca Vodnoy, senior vice president of Corporate Alliances at The Walt Disney Company, said the alliance builds on a "longstanding relationship between two companies that share a deep commitment to creativity" and gives Disney's 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 companies did not disclose financial terms, the specific duration of the multi-year agreement, or which Disney franchises and characters will be prioritized in the initial model training. No details were provided on how the partnership addresses ongoing industry concerns about AI's impact on creative labor, copyright, or the use of existing artist work in training data beyond the stated commitment to "protecting creators and their works."