Disney Taps Tech Veteran Karandeep Anand as First CTO
Disney has appointed Karandeep Anand as its first Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Anand, former CEO of AI chatbot start-up Character.AI, will join Disney on October 2nd and report directly to CEO Josh D'Amaro. He previously held leadership roles at Meta's Facebook and Microsoft.
Anand was recently CEO of Character.AI, but the company removed Disney characters from its platform after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from Disney last year. Despite this, Anand will lead Disney's technology efforts in his new role, overseeing enterprise technology, infrastructure, data, and AI platforms. He will also work across various tech teams to 'further modernize' how the company builds and delivers technology.
D'Amaro emphasized that Anand brings a unique mix of experience in infrastructure, consumer technology, and AI, making him a valuable addition to Disney's senior leadership team. Anand expressed his enthusiasm for joining Disney, citing its blend of storytelling and technology innovation.