Walt Disney is on the hunt for artificial intelligence experts
To improve his fortunes after months of layoffs and not exactly florid earnings, Walt Disney is now betting on artificial intelligence in the hope of developing AI applications internally and also of being able to further cut costs. All the details
The future of cinema looks increasingly bleak. In Hollywood, while screenwriters and actors go on strike and producers and directors think of replacing them and saving money thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), Walt Disney is also giving a nod to this technology which promises a great revolution in all sectors .
AAA AI EXPERTS WANTED
Walt Disney has in fact created a task force to study artificial intelligence and how it can be applied to entertainment, but is also looking at possible collaborations with startups. As proof of its interest, the company is currently looking for 11 candidates with expertise in AI or machine learning ( machine learning ).
The positions, Reuters notes, cover virtually every corner of the company, from Walt Disney Studios to theme parks, from the company's engineering group to the Disney-branded television and advertising team, which is trying to build a “next generation” powered by artificial intelligence.
WILL THOSE WHO DO NOT GIVE IN TO AI END UP DISAPPEARING?
The multinational, which has already not been doing well in the last period, sees AI as a train it cannot miss. In fact, artificial intelligence is very attractive to many companies because it allows them to significantly reduce costs. As an internal consultant explained to the news agency, a film or television production like The Little Mermaid can cost up to 300 million dollars, while AI would allow spending to be contained.
But the diverse fantasy world of Disney is not limited to cinema. Artificial intelligence, for example, could be brought to its playgrounds to improve customer service or create new interactions.
Furthermore, according to the source, "traditional media like Disney must understand AI otherwise they risk obsolescence".
CEO Bob Iger knows this well, making technology adoption one of his top three priorities when he was named CEO in 2005 and now in his second term. Since Iger's arrival, in fact, a series of initiatives have taken place aimed at improving the research and development sector, also through partnerships with the most prestigious technological universities from all over the world.
A DELICATE QUESTION
Behind the glitter of money that multinationals see in artificial intelligence, however, there are workers. Which is why, at the moment, Disney weighs the words. In fact, Reuters recalls that the visual effects supervisors who contributed to the latest Indiana Jones film highlighted the painstaking work of more than 100 artists who spent three years trying to "rejuvenate" Harrison Ford so that the octogenarian actor could appear as a young man in the first minutes of the film.
At the end of March, as Start also wrote, Iger had announced that shortly there would be a series of layoffs, divided into three rounds throughout 2023. The victims: 7,000 employees in various sectors, from Disney Entertainment to Disney Parks, ESPN and also Experiences and Products.
Creativity, in particular, has been one of the most condemned sectors: of the 5 billion dollars in costs that Disney has announced it wants to cut, 3 have in fact affected the creative part.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/walt-disney-e-a-caccia-di-esperti-di-intelligenza-artificiale/ on Thu, 10 Aug 2023 11:40:16 +0000.