Disney to pay $60M a year for 66 Character.AI staff plus $30M retention pool

In mid-September 2026, Disney hired Character.AI CEO Karandeep Anand as its first-ever company-wide technology chief; the reports did not disclose his compensation. On October 16, Business Insider reported that Disney plans to pay $60 million per year to take on 66 employees from Character.AI, the AI chatbot company that has filed for bankruptcy, along with a separate $30 million retention pool. The reports put total pay and retention spending over three years at $1.8 billion—wait, $180 million. The move came about two weeks after Disney cut hundreds of technology jobs.

On October 18, Techmeme cited a filing reported by Bloomberg saying Disney had agreed to hire more than 60 staff from Character.AI and pay them roughly $180 million over three years, plus $30 million for retention awards. The deal requires approval from a bankruptcy judge. The two reports differ slightly on the headcount—66 in the earlier story versus more than 60 in the later one—and on how the money is described: $60 million a year plus a $30 million retention pool, versus about $180 million over three years plus $30 million in retention awards. The reports described the arrangement as a soft landing for the employees amid the bankruptcy proceedings. The transaction remains pending approval by the bankruptcy judge.