Why OpenAI really shut down Sora

techcrunch.com Mar 30, 2026

Why OpenAI really shut down Sora

Curated by Shubham · TechCapsules · Mar 30, 2026

AI-summarised brief · reviewed before publication

OpenAI shut down its AI video-generation tool, Sora, six months after its release due to low user engagement and high operating costs. Despite a million users initially, the number dropped to under 500,000, with the app burning $1 million daily. To refocus resources, CEO Sam Altman terminated Sora, freeing up compute power, as competitors like Anthropic gained ground, notably with Claude Code, and a major partnership with Disney was also scrapped.

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