Hasbro has launched an AI studio, Sixth Wall, designed to transition its most iconic characters “into the AI era,” and is introducing a new character licensing program focused on enabling real-time interactions.
The launch announcement from Hasbro notes that consumers are already using unauthorized versions of popular characters across chat, voice, gaming, and content creation platforms. Sixth Wall has been launched to give creators, rights holders, and third-party partners a “trusted framework” for bringing characters into the AI era, “while preserving authenticity, safety, and commercial rights.”
Further, the company is introducing “behavioral licensing,” powered by CharacterOS, Sixth Wall’s proprietary system for preserving a character’s personality, canon, voice, and safety guardrails across interactive experiences. Each Sixth Wall character is built using authorized source material and human voice performances. A talent participation model compensates performers and uses only authorized recordings.
A strategic partnership with ElevenLabs, a leading AI audio company, will see select Hasbro characters brought to its Iconic Marketplace. Per the arrangement, 12 characters, including Optimus Prime, Megatron, Cobra Commander, Mr. Potato Head, and the cast of Clue, will be available to request at launch, with more following later this year.
The AI studio will initially focus on experiences for those aged 13+ and on enterprise use cases. It is not developing AI products for young children.
In terms of the behavioral licensing effort, requests will be considered for pilots across interactive storytelling experiences, conversational games and digital companions, connected physical products and robotics, AI-powered brand ambassadors, location-based entertainment experiences, and dynamic customer engagement agents.
“CharacterOS is compelling because it unlocks a bigger creative canvas while addressing a real challenge in AI: the unauthorized use of content,” said Chris Cocks, CEO of Hasbro. “It is built around a creator-first model that gives voice talent and creatives a meaningful seat at the table. It gives brands a trusted way to bring characters into new AI-enabled platforms without losing what makes them authentic. And most exciting to me, it opens entirely new surfaces for play and storytelling, from making a store greeting feel magical to transforming a call waiting experience into a moment with a fan’s favorite character.”
Roberta Thomson, CEO of Sixth Wall, added, “One of the most meaningful parts of building Sixth Wall has been sitting in the recording studio, witnessing legendary voice actors capture the essence of Hasbro’s most iconic characters. AI introduces a new dimension: preserving a character’s personality, not just their voice. That’s what led us to create Behavioral Licensing—so these characters remain true to their creators, their brands, and the fans who love them.”
“It’s often the voice that gives a character their personality and texture,” said Mati Staniszewski, cofounder of ElevenLabs. “We’ve developed the AI voice models and marketplace infrastructure to make it possible to deliver authentic character voices at scale, and we’ve had great fun working with Hasbro to bring their iconic characters to life.”
