Carmelo Anthony joins Utopai Studios as strategic partner to grow sports entertainment IP

MUMBAI – Carmelo Anthony is making a new kind of play, and this time it is off the court. The basketball legend has joined forces with Utopai Studios through his production company Creative 7, becoming a strategic partner as the studio looks to expand its sports and entertainment intellectual property business.

The partnership marks a significant move for both sides. For Anthony, it opens a new lane in athlete-led storytelling. For Utopai Studios, it strengthens its push to become a major player in AI-powered content creation.

At the centre of the collaboration is PAI, Utopai’s proprietary cinematic storytelling platform designed to help creators develop and scale original content across film, television, streaming and digital media.

Under the partnership, Carmelo Anthony and Asani Swann, his business partner and co-founder of Creative 7, will work with the studio to bring more professional athletes into the entertainment ecosystem, helping them turn personal stories and sporting journeys into commercial entertainment properties.

Speaking on the collaboration, Creative 7 founder Carmelo Anthony said what stood out was not just the technology, but the vision behind it, adding that sports has always been rooted in human stories that deserve a larger entertainment platform.

Meanwhile, Creative 7 co-founder Asani Swann said the partnership creates an opportunity to turn authentic sports stories into original entertainment properties faster and with greater creative control.

For Utopai Studios, the ambition is broader. The company wants to redefine how entertainment is made in the AI era.

Explaining that vision, Utopai Studios co-founder and chief executive Cecilia Shen said the goal is to build a new studio model where creators and athletes have more ownership and direct control over the intellectual property they create.

One of the first projects under the new partnership will be an anime-inspired entertainment property built around Anthony’s career and cultural influence. The project is expected to launch initially as a short-form series, alongside behind-the-scenes content showcasing Anthony’s direct creative involvement.

The announcement follows Utopai’s recent collaboration with James Harden on an AI-animated short, underlining the studio’s growing interest in athlete-driven content.

If Hollywood has long been built on stars, Utopai is betting that in the AI era, athletes could become the next generation of studio builders. Carmelo Anthony appears ready to lead that charge.