OpenAI Shuts Down AI Video App Sora

(MENAFN) OpenAI is shutting down its short-form AI video platform Sora, just months after the app surged in popularity following its debut last fall, the company announced Tuesday.

In a concise statement posted to X, the ChatGPT developer confirmed it was "saying goodbye to the Sora app," pledging to release guidance shortly on how users can retrieve and preserve content created on the platform.

"What you made with Sora mattered, and we know this news is disappointing," the company said.

OpenAI launched Sora in September, positioning it as a platform enabling users to generate short AI-powered videos from virtually any written prompt. The app quickly drew a devoted user base — but also ignited fierce backlash from academics, advocacy organizations, and digital safety experts who warned the technology posed serious risks.

Chief among those concerns: the potential for Sora to become a pipeline for nonconsensual content and dangerously convincing deepfakes, as the tool placed near-limitless generative capability in the hands of the public.

Critics also cautioned that algorithmically curated AI video feeds could accelerate doomscrolling — an increasingly documented pattern of compulsive, harmful overconsumption of online content.

OpenAI has not disclosed the precise reasons behind the shutdown, but the closure arrives as regulators and civil society groups worldwide sharpen their scrutiny of generative AI tools and their potential for misuse.

MENAFN25032026000045017169ID1110903939