Google — the same company that silences conservative voices and throttles dissenting content — is quietly pitching Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros. Discovery to license their films and characters for AI training, a move that would hand the tech giant unprecedented leverage over how American culture gets created and monetized.
This isn't just a business deal. It's the next phase of Big Tech's consolidation of cultural power. Google already decides what you can say and see online. Now it wants to own the raw material of how your movies and shows get made — and who gets paid.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Google executives have approached multiple major studios about licensing intellectual property to train AI models. No deals have been reached, partly because of the complexities around AI and the expected backlash from Hollywood talent and unions. One insider told the Times that Google's models need "highly dynamic content and metadata that only Hollywood studios have" to be viable for large-scale film and TV production. In other words: Google's tech isn't good enough on its own. It needs your culture to finish the product.
The Verge reports that Google is pitching its AI tools as a way to "streamline production and visual effects" — corporate-speak for cutting jobs and replacing workers. Union members and creators have already pushed back, raising concerns about copyright, job displacement, and artistic control. They're right to worry.
Follow the money. In June, Google dropped $75 million into A24 — the studio behind "Everything Everywhere All at Once" and "Moonlight" — as part of a strategic AI partnership. Rob Rosenberg, a partner at law firm Moses & Singer and former Showtime Networks general counsel, told the Times the A24 deal gives Google "a type of credibility they're not getting yet in Hollywood" and called it part of an "image rehabilitation" campaign. Google also partnered with director Darren Aronofsky's venture Primordial Soup. The strategy is clear: buy credibility, then buy the content.
The irony is thick. A decade ago, Google was Hollywood's enemy — studios fumed over pirated clips uploaded to YouTube without permission or payment. Now Google is courting the same industry it once looted, offering itself as a "partner" rather than a parasite. As former studio executive Tom Nunan told the Times, Google is trying to figure out "how best can we understand that without just terrifying people." When your business plan requires you to not terrify people, maybe reconsider the plan.
NBCUniversal told the Times it is "not in active conversations" with Google about licensing IP for AI. Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Google itself all declined to comment — which tells you everything about how politically sensitive these talks are.
Meanwhile, Washington sits on its hands. No hearings. No legislation. No accountability. The same Republican and Democratic establishments that can't agree on much both seem content to let Big Tech swallow another chunk of American creative life without a fight.
The question isn't whether Hollywood and AI will merge — the money is already moving. The question is whether anyone in power will demand terms that protect the workers and creators who actually make the culture, or whether Google simply buys its way into another monopoly while the political class looks the other way.
