Adobe and The Walt Disney Company have announced a multi-year strategic alliance to expand the use of artificial intelligence and creative technologies across Disney’s entertainment, theme park, cruise, and sports businesses. The agreement designates Adobe as an Official AI Innovation Partner of Disney and includes customized generative AI models, early access to creative tools, and dedicated engineering and research support.
The collaboration builds on a longstanding relationship between the companies and will support Disney’s creative development processes through Adobe Firefly, Adobe Firefly Foundry, Adobe Premiere, and Adobe Photoshop.
A central component of the alliance involves developing proprietary generative AI models tailored to Disney’s intellectual property. Through Adobe Firefly Foundry, the companies plan to create models trained on Disney-specific character attributes, environments, visual styles, and other creative elements.
These models are designed to produce commercially safe, production-ready assets while maintaining human oversight and protecting the creative work associated with Disney’s brands and franchises.
Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development is already using Adobe Firefly Foundry to accelerate theme park concept development. Current applications include technology that converts hand-drawn sketches into rendered two-dimensional concept art and customized image generation tools that produce franchise-accurate creative materials.
The partnership will also expand into The Walt Disney Studios’ StudioLAB, where Adobe will collaborate with creative and technical teams to develop internal workflows and prototype new storytelling tools.
At ESPN, the companies will work through the ESPN Edge Innovation Center to explore how AI can improve sports storytelling, increase audience engagement, and create new applications for ESPN’s extensive content archive.
Beyond technology development, the agreement includes global marketing campaigns, industry event collaborations, customer storytelling initiatives, and expanded Adobe participation across Disney’s media platforms.
The companies expect additional initiatives to launch throughout the alliance’s multi-year term, with early collaborative projects already underway at StudioLAB and ESPN Edge.
KEY QUOTES
“Adobe and The Walt Disney Company have had a decades-long collaboration, where Adobe’s creativity, productivity and customer experience orchestration tools have supported everything from Disney’s content creation pipelines and workflows to personalized marketing campaigns and digital experiences that come to life in the parks. Today’s 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.”
Hannah Elsakr, Vice President, GenAI New Business Ventures, Adobe
“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. 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.”
Becca Vodnoy, Senior Vice President, Corporate Alliances, The Walt Disney Company
