Disney Appoints Karandeep Anand as First Chief Technology Officer
The Walt Disney Company has appointed Karandeep Anand as its first-ever chief technology officer, a newly created role that will report directly to CEO Josh D'Amaro. Anand is set to begin his position on October 2 and will oversee enterprise technology, infrastructure, data platforms, AI, product development, and engineering across the company's segments. He previously served as CEO of Character.AI and held senior roles at Brex and Meta (formerly Facebook), where he worked for over a decade. Anand’s appointment reflects Disney’s growing emphasis on leveraging technology to drive growth, particularly through its streaming service Disney+. This move follows recent executive reshuffles within the company, including voluntary early retirement packages offered earlier this year as part of cost-cutting measures. Notably, Anand's hiring comes after a prior legal dispute between Disney and Character.AI over unauthorized use of Disney characters.
Topics: AI leadership technology