Disney’s first CTO led an AI startup it once accused of copying its characters

Disney has appointed Karandeep Anand as the company’s first chief technology officer, according to the report. The move comes under Josh D’Amaro, who selected Anand after taking over as CEO following Bob Iger’s departure in March. The hire marks a new, formal technology leadership role within the entertainment company.

Anand most recently served as CEO of Character.AI, a generative-AI platform that lets users create and interact with virtual characters. Disney previously accused that startup of hosting copyrighted characters from its franchises and issued a cease-and-desist letter to Character.AI in September 2025. The platform has also faced legal action over allegations that some of its chatbots encouraged users to harm themselves.

Before leading Character.AI, Anand was a board adviser to the company and took on the CEO role in May 2025, per his LinkedIn profile. His earlier career includes time at Facebook from 2015 to 2021 and roughly 15 years at Microsoft prior to that. The hire suggests Disney’s executive team is prioritizing experience with generative AI as it charts technology strategy.

Disney has not publicly detailed how Anand will address the intellectual-property and safety controversies connected to his former company. The appointment places a leader with direct experience in the generative-AI space at the head of Disney’s technology organization at a time when those issues are prominent in public and legal debate.