Robert A. Iger

Money Moves

Started the A+E sale process before handing off

Disney is walking away from the cable channels that ran A&E, History and Lifetime. On August 5, it agreed to sell its 50% share of A+E Global Media to Hearst, its partner of four decades, for about $1.2 billion in cash.

Updated Aug 6

Money Moves

Stepped down March 18, 2026; remains senior adviser through year-end

For 28 years ESPN was Disney's cable cash machine — a pay-TV channel that millions paid for whether they watched it or not. Disney's May 6 earnings report described something different: a standalone $29.99-a-month streaming service, an asset valued at $30 billion, and a sports network in which the National Football League now owns 10%.

Updated May 31

Money Moves

Stepped down as Disney CEO on March 18, 2026; remains senior adviser to successor Josh D'Amaro. The announced $1B OpenAI equity stake was never finalized before his departure.

OpenAI previewed Sora as a glimpse of cinema's AI future in February 2024. Twenty-six months later, on April 26, 2026, the company switched off the Sora consumer app for good.

Updated May 31

Money Moves

Balancing an aggressive AI embrace with an aggressive legal crackdown on unlicensed AI use.

Mickey Mouse just shook hands with the algorithm Hollywood spent two years trying to tame. Disney is investing $1 billion in OpenAI, letting Sora and ChatGPT Images legally generate short videos and images of more than 200 Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars characters — not the actors who play them.

Updated May 11