Sora Is Dead, and Your AI Tools Might Be Next
Five months ago, every major outlet said OpenAI's Sora was going to "end Hollywood." Disney supposedly committed a billion dollars (spoiler: they didn't).
Sora is dead. Disney never invested. The billion-dollar deal never happened.
Before you feel too comfortable about that, ask yourself: how many AI tools are you betting on right now? Did you ask these three questions before you signed up?
- When will this actually happen?
- Where is the money coming from?
- What will it actually do?
Sora failed all three. And it's not an outlier. This is the pattern across the AI industry right now. Billion-dollar "partnerships" that never show up in actual financials. Data centers "under construction" that are actually a steel beam in a field. Revenue numbers that sound massive until you realize "annualized" means "we had one good month and multiplied by twelve."
Here's the part that matters for your business: every AI tool you're using right now costs the company behind it $2-5 for every $1 you pay. That's not a business model. That's a subsidy. And subsidies end.
When they do, your prices spike, your features get cut, or your tool disappears entirely (just ask anyone who built workflows around Sora).
I use AI tools every day. But I also know I'm building in tornado alley. You need to be weather-aware, have a plan, and know where your safe place is if the storm comes.
I have more thoughts on how to actually structure this for a business. (Should we talk?)