The Walt Disney Co. and Adobe plan to reimagine an AI-powered future.
In a press release, Adobe said it will forge a multi-year relationship as a Walt Disney Co. Official AI Innovation Partner, bringing access to tools such as Adobe Firefly, Firefly Foundry, Premiere, and Photoshop. Additionally, this would include engineering and research support to help integrate AI into the stories of Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, Disney Cruise Line, ESPN Edge, and StudioLAB. The partnership will also offer global marketing activations, thought leadership, industry events, customer storytelling, and more. Disney said it will empower creatives with innovation centered on responsible AI.
“Disney has always embraced innovation, and this alliance with Adobe builds on a longstanding relationship between two companies that share a deep commitment to creativity,” said Becca Vodnoy, senior vice president of corporate alliances at The Walt Disney Co., in the press release. “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.”
Kyle Laughlin, senior vice president of Walt Disney Imagineering R&D – technology and engineering, said Adobe’s tools would encourage Disney Imagineers to think more innovatively, visualize ideas faster, and focus their creativity on maintaining a standard of excellence across Disney’s experiences.
One example is Disney Imagineers using Firefly Foundry to improve theme park development.
“Disney Imagineers are experimenting with Firefly Foundry to bring new ideas into the theme park development pipeline with greater speed, including a sketch-to-image model that transforms rough hand-drawn concepts into fully rendered 2D concept,” the press release stated. “These artist-led proprietary models are customized using Disney intellectual property, including unique world knowledge like character attributes, environments, and visual styles. They generate commercially safe, production-ready outputs while accelerating work so teams can ideate and develop more creative projects.”
Adobe will also work with Disney to create customized AI models for post-production and VFX applications as a StudioLAB Innovation Partner, according to the press release. Adobe and ESPN will leverage AI to reimagine how they present sports highlights and documentaries.
“The StudioLAB team is always looking to expand the toolbox for our storytellers at every step of the creative process,” explained Sonia Doshi, StudioLAB vice president of strategic operations, design, and production at The Walt Disney Studios, in the press release. “We are excited to collaborate with Adobe to amplify the imagination of artists across Disney Studios.”
