WME is taking a different AI path than CAA, focusing on technical partnerships

As Hollywood grapples with the growing threat of AI, WME is taking a different approach than rival CAA, emphasizing technology partnerships and legislative efforts to build its own digital repository.

While CAA captures digital likenesses and voice samples of its clients and then uses AI company Veritone to store the assets, WME outsources those roles to two different AI companies.

“We are not a technology company. We’re not trying to be a technology company,” WME chief strategy officer Chris Jacquemin told TheWrap.

The agency has developed a three-pronged strategy focused on partnering with AI companies for protection, comprehensive audits of business deals and legislative advocacy through its Government Relations Division, which is led by former Meta chief Matthew Kaplan.