Pratik Thakar, The Coca-Cola Company’s global vp and head of generative AI, said research firm Kantar ranked Coca-Cola’s AI ad as the top-performing Christmas campaign globally last year across all categories—a result that encouraged the company to continue experimenting with generative tools.
Coca-Cola is also toying with AI through more than a dozen incubators with major tech companies, gaining early access to models to test how the technology can drive creativity and efficiency, Thakar said. Beyond marketing, this includes applying AI to research and development, supply chain, and knowledge management—but without creating a separate AI department. – Rebecca Stewart
Disney signed a $1 billion deal with OpenAI
Disney announced in December that it will acquire a $1 billion stake in OpenAI and license its characters for Sora, the company’s short-form video platform launched in September.
As part of the three-year deal, some videos made with Sora will appear on Disney+, the companies said. Sora and ChatGPT Images are set to start producing fan-inspired videos featuring Disney’s licensed characters in early 2026. Disney said it will also team up with OpenAI to create “new products, tools, and experiences” and “deploy” ChatGPT into its workforce.
The first big AI deal out of Hollywood stops short of using actors’ voices or likenesses—central points of ire in the recent actors and writers strikes—but signals that studios may be shifting from blocking AI startups to partnering with them.
Disney CEO Bob Iger framed the move as a cautious embrace of the technology. “The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence marks an important moment for our industry, and through this collaboration with OpenAI, we will thoughtfully and responsibly extend the reach of our storytelling,” he said in a statement. –Trishla Ostwal
