Disney Joins ARIAM Coalition for Responsible AI Development

As artificial intelligence continues to reshape the entertainment industry, Disney is taking a seat at the table in a new effort aimed at ensuring that technological innovation doesn't come at the expense of creators, consumers, or intellectual property.

What’s Happening:

The Walt Disney Company has joined a newly formed international coalition dedicated to promoting the responsible development and deployment of artificial intelligence across the media, publishing, education, and entertainment sectors.
Known as The Alliance for Responsible Innovation in the Arts & Media (ARIAM), the organization brings together some of the world's most influential content creators and media companies to advocate for safeguards, transparency, and accountability in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
Disney joins an impressive roster of founding members that includes Adobe, The New York Times Company, BBC, Condé Nast, The Financial Times, ITV, Cambridge University Press & Assessment, Wiley, Advance, and Reach. Together, the coalition hopes to shape public policy and industry standards as AI tools become increasingly integrated into content creation, distribution, and consumer experiences.
The launch comes at a pivotal moment for Hollywood and the broader creative industries. While AI has been embraced by some as a transformative technology capable of streamlining workflows and unlocking new creative possibilities, it has also sparked significant concerns surrounding copyright protection, intellectual property rights, misinformation, and the future of creative jobs.
For Disney, whose business is built on some of the most valuable intellectual property in the world, participation in ARIAM reflects the company's growing interest in helping establish guardrails around emerging technologies that could impact everything from storytelling and character creation to consumer trust and brand protection.
The coalition will be led by Victoria Furniss, a veteran media executive and former Netflix legal and public policy leader who now serves as CEO and co-founder of The Birdella Group. Furniss spent nearly nine years at Netflix before previously holding executive positions at Warner Bros., giving her extensive experience navigating the intersection of technology, media, and regulation.
According to Furniss, ARIAM is not seeking to hinder innovation but rather to ensure that the long-term health of the creative ecosystem remains protected– "ARIAM's goal is not to slow AI down but to ensure it is able to sustain the broader ecosystems long term," Furniss said. "ARIAM is a first-of-its-kind cross content sector coalition seeking to ensure that AI supports human creativity, respects the rule of law, and safeguards consumers."
The organization's mission centers on a number of increasingly urgent issues facing the entertainment industry. Among its priorities are protecting intellectual property, combating misinformation, preventing the misuse of recognizable characters and brands, and advocating for stronger consumer protections, particularly for children.
Those concerns are especially relevant for Disney, whose portfolio includes globally recognized franchises such as Mickey Mouse, Disney Princesses, Pixar characters, Marvel superheroes, and Star Wars icons. As generative AI tools become more sophisticated, unauthorized use of recognizable characters, voices, and imagery has become a growing concern across the entertainment industry.
The coalition is also emphasizing the importance of protecting creators. In recent years, debates surrounding AI played a major role in labor negotiations involving the entertainment industry's major unions, including the Writers Guild of America, SAG-AFTRA, and the Directors Guild of America. Each union ultimately secured contract provisions addressing AI usage, helping avoid a repeat of the industry-wide disruptions that accompanied the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes.
ARIAM argues that meaningful accountability must be built into AI systems from the outset. Without proper safeguards, the organization warns that creators could face intellectual property theft, consumers could be exposed to misleading content, and public trust in media could be undermined.
Child safety advocate John Carr, OBE, highlighted another area of concern with the increasing use of AI-generated content that manipulates familiar characters and educational materials– "For years, parents, teachers and children have relied on well-known characters, media, and educational materials as safe, dependable guides or sources of entertainment," Carr said. "The irresponsible development and use of AI have allowed these to be hijacked and distorted, turning them into agents of harm."
That issue carries particular significance for family-focused brands like Disney, which have spent decades building trust with parents and audiences around the world.
While Disney has not yet issued its own public statement regarding its participation in ARIAM, the company's decision to join the coalition signals a broader recognition that the future of AI in entertainment will likely be shaped not only by technology companies but also by the organizations that create and own the content these systems increasingly rely upon.
The coalition's launch also reflects a growing trend of major media companies seeking a stronger voice in conversations surrounding AI regulation. Rather than simply reacting to technological change, organizations like Disney are increasingly working to influence how those technologies are developed and governed.
As AI continues to transform industries ranging from publishing and education to film, television, and streaming, Disney's involvement in ARIAM positions the company among a growing group of content leaders advocating for a future where innovation and creativity can coexist.
Whether the discussion centers on protecting beloved characters, safeguarding intellectual property, or ensuring that creators remain at the heart of storytelling, Disney's participation amplifies the notion that the future of AI should be built alongside the creative industries, not at their expense.

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