Disney Names First CTO, Hires Character.AI CEO Karandeep Anand

Disney has appointed Karandeep Anand as its first chief technology officer, creating a new senior executive vice president position that reports directly to CEO Josh D'Amaro. Anand, who most recently led Character.AI as CEO, begins October 2 and will bring several technical staff members from the AI startup with him.

The appointment represents a significant organizational shift for Disney, which has never previously maintained a company-wide CTO role. Anand will oversee enterprise technology, infrastructure, data and AI platforms, product development, and engineering while coordinating technology teams across Disney's diverse business segments.

A Tech Executive With Deep Platform Experience

Anand brings extensive experience building consumer technology and infrastructure at scale. His career includes serving as president and chief product officer at financial technology company Brex, and multiple senior roles at Meta's Facebook, most recently as vice president of ads and business products. He also spent 15 years at Microsoft, where he contributed to developing the Azure cloud computing platform.

"Karandeep brings a rare mix of experience across infrastructure, consumer technology and AI, and will be a vital addition to Disney's senior leadership team," D'Amaro said in a statement.

Why It Matters

The hire signals D'Amaro's commitment to making technology a central growth driver since becoming CEO in March. With Disney+ at the core of the company's direct-to-consumer strategy, a dedicated CTO position suggests Disney is consolidating its technology leadership to build more integrated digital experiences and strengthen direct fan relationships. The move also indicates Disney views AI and platform infrastructure as strategic priorities requiring C-suite attention.

Past Tensions With Character.AI

The appointment carries an unusual backstory. Approximately one year before hiring Anand, Disney sent Character.AI a cease-and-desist letter alleging the startup used Disney characters without authorization, according to Variety. Character.AI complied and removed the flagged characters, CNBC reported. The legal friction appears to have been resolved, with Disney now bringing Anand and his technical team into the fold.

Broader Executive Restructuring

The CTO appointment comes amid wider leadership changes at Disney. Adam Smith, who previously held the company's most senior technology position, was promoted Thursday to chairman of direct-to-consumer for Disney Entertainment, focusing specifically on streaming operations. Earlier this year, Disney offered voluntary early retirement packages to longtime executives as part of cost-reduction efforts that also included multiple rounds of layoffs across marketing, corporate functions, Pixar, National Geographic, and ESPN.

Details of Anand's appointment were first reported by Quartz and Variety.