Leer en español: Character.AI: $20 millones por los activos, $60 millones al año para el equipo

Disney has agreed to make job offers to at least 60 Character.AI employees, the majority of the bankrupt chatbot startup’s workforce, with estimated pay of $60 million a year, according to a court filing first spotted by Bloomberg and reported by TechCrunch on 18 October 2026 (TechCrunch). Disney’s bid for the company’s assets is $20 million.

What happened

Character.AI filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week, with Disney as the first bidder, which we covered on 13 October. The company’s bidding-procedures filing in the case adds the details. The deal was signed on 18 September 2026, before the bankruptcy. Disney agreed to hire most of the staff, including the chief executive, and paid $7.5 million up front, 37.5% of the total cash price; $2 million of that is a refundable deposit (court filing). The filing says the “vast majority” of employees offered roles accepted, and they keep helping Character.AI run the business and the sale for up to five months.

Disney’s offer is a “stalking horse” bid: it sets the floor, and anyone can bid more. If Disney is outbid, it gets a break-up fee and expenses of $700,000, and the winner may interview and make offers to up to 80% of the employees Disney hired. The filing says the assets had been marketed for over a year before the bankruptcy, and blames high costs and “potential litigation-related liabilities and regulatory engagement.” Former CEO Karandeep Anand is now Disney’s first CTO, TechCrunch reports.

Why people are arguing about it

By our own arithmetic, the estimated yearly pay for the hired staff is three times the cash Disney is offering for the company. That is the core tension in deals like this. The people who built the product get a soft landing and a new employer; the shareholders and creditors share whatever the assets fetch. Character.AI says Disney’s terms gave the best value it could find after a long search, and Disney agreed to let rival bidders talk to the team to keep the auction fair. The open question is whether any rival will pay more for a company whose team has already signed with the first bidder. We saw the same question in the Groq lawsuit.

What it means if you’re building a startup

When a buyer mostly wants your people, the value moves into salaries and new stock grants, not into the purchase price. The price is what shareholders split, and investors with liquidation preferences are paid before common stock, which is what founders and employees usually hold. If your company is ever sold for its team, ask early how much goes to the company and how much to new employment packages, and who on your cap table that leaves out. Our guide Liquidation preferences, explained with a $30M exit shows how a small sale price is split.

Sources

• TechCrunch, “Disney agrees to hire the majority of Character.AI’s workforce” by Anthony Ha, 18 Oct 2026: techcrunch.com
• Character.AI bidding procedures motion, US Bankruptcy Court, via Stretto: cases.stretto.com

Written by Fabian Cisneros. Educational only — not investment, legal or tax advice. See the full disclaimer.