Deputy White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller’s wife is leading a MAGA meltdown over Disney’s $1 billion investment in OpenAI.
While outrage over the partnership has gone across party lines, only right-wing commentators fear it will somehow corrupt American kids with progressive content.
“OpenAI who is still donating money to transgender and DEI causes is now partnering with Disney, the leader of kid’s entertainment,” wrote Katie Miller, who is now a right-wing podcaster, on X. “After the total crash and burn of Snow White you would think Disney would learn that parents don’t want male princesses.”
She continued, “This is how they trans our kids and slip crazy DEI into everything.”
Whatever that means.
Miller, 34, was not alone in her disgust.
Another user on X raged, “Just what the world needed: Woke AI on steroids. Proofreading my TPS reports? ‘This lacks diversity—suggest inserting an empowered trans princess arc for better inclusivity.’ Thanks, Disney.”
Outrage is not limited to the right. Many creatives fear that the deal, which allows characters from Disney favorites like Frozen and Star Wars to be utilized by the generative AI video app Sora, will lead to an influx of AI “slop” online.
“Star Wars fans must come together and bully the daylights out of Disney and any who embrace this AI slop,” posted the voice actor Kyle Katarn. “This is NOT the way.”
Others expressed shock that the House of Mouse was the one cutting a check in its partnership with OpenAI, which was co-founded and is run by Sam Altman, who is worth $2.1 billion, according to Forbes.
The 59-year-old actress Justine Bateman wrote on X, “OpenAI got Disney to PAY THEM to openly slice-and-dice Disney artists’ work.”
Another user added, “This is the first story that’s truly baffled me. Why is *Disney* paying *OpenAI* for this rather than the other way around? Surely Disney loses value by letting its IP be slop-ified, and OpenAI gains value from this increase in credibility, right?”
Disney CEO Bob Iger has hailed the partnership as a “rapid advancement” in his company’s embracing of artificial intelligence. The Wall Street Journal reports that Disney weighed using generative AI on two blockbuster films, the live-action movies Moana and Tron: Ares, but scrapped those plans in part over ownership concerns.
“Through this collaboration with OpenAI, we will thoughtfully and responsibly extend the reach of our storytelling through generative AI, while respecting and protecting creators and their works,” he said in a statement.
As part of the deal, Disney says it is making OpenAI’s chatbot, ChatGPT, available to its employees to “build new tools and experiences.” Altman says users will now be able to use Disney characters in prompts for creation by ChatGPT Images.
“Disney is the global gold standard for storytelling, and we’re excited to partner to allow Sora and ChatGPT Images to expand the way people create and experience great content,” Altman said in a statement.
