OpenAI has confirmed the discontinuation of its Sora consumer-facing application and associated API, a move announced on March 24, 2026. The company stated its decision stems from a strategic re-evaluation, opting to reallocate significant compute resources to other projects, including its overarching pursuit of artificial general intelligence (AGI) and world simulation research for advancing robotics.
According to an OpenAI spokesperson, “We’ve decided to discontinue Sora in the consumer app and API. As we focus and compute demand grows, the Sora research team continues to focus on world simulation research to advance robotics that will help people solve real-world, physical tasks.” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly informed employees that ending the Sora app will free up resources for the development of next-generation AI models.
Sora, which allowed users to generate short-form videos from text prompts, was launched in September 2025 and quickly gained viral popularity, briefly becoming a top free app on Apple’s US App Store. However, its rapid rise also brought concerns regarding deepfakes and the generation of content featuring protected intellectual property. Following initial viral success, the app’s popularity had reportedly declined.
The discontinuation also impacts a significant partnership with Disney. A three-year content licensing deal, announced in December 2025, would have allowed Sora users to generate videos featuring over 200 Disney, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars characters. As a result of OpenAI’s decision, Disney has exited a $1 billion investment deal that was part of the broader collaboration. Disney responded to the news, stating, “As the nascent AI field advances rapidly, we respect OpenAI’s decision to exit the video generation business and to shift its priorities elsewhere.”
OpenAI has not yet provided a specific shutdown date for the app and API but has committed to sharing more details soon, including timelines and instructions for users to preserve their work.