LogInAll while saying that they don't want to replace people with machines.
Embracer Group, a video game publisher whose name has lately become synonymous with unpopular business practices due to them firing around 1,400 workers and canceling over 40 projects, has given a number of individuals yet another reason to dislike them by announcing their plans to incorporate generative AI into their production processes in order to, according to Embracer themselves, empower the developers.
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According to the company's recently released financial report, Embracer has introduced an AI policy package, which they claim will empower human workers and enable the studio to compete with other developers who have already integrated artificial intelligence models into their workflows:
"Certainly, one of the major risks for a company is not to use AI, as this would mean a competitive disadvantage vis-à-vis other industry players," said Embracer's Tomas Hedman. "Most companies will move forward on AI integration in different ways. For us, it is the way that we do this that is the most critical element."
Anticipating the community's concerns about the potential layoffs coming to the company following the adoption of such a policy, Embracer claimed that they don't plan to replace their workers with machines, instead opting for what they called a "human-centric approach":
"We do not want to replace people with AI, we want to empower them. This is the core of our human-centric approach to leveraging the potential with AI," Hedman added.
As for how Embracer intends to employ generative AI, the report states that they will use it for identifying inconsistencies in scripts and storytelling, scriptwriting, image creation, idea generation, and quality control:
"As AI models become more powerful, we can leverage their capacity also in the creative process, for example, by identifying inconsistencies in scripts and storytelling. There will be tremendous benefits for our creative teams regarding scriptwriting, image creation, idea generation, quality control, and more. And, as models become more human-like, the interaction between players and AI-supported functions will be much more dynamic. If in a game scenario you bargain, AI can remember this the next time. That makes the whole gaming experience much more interesting and lifelike."
So, image creation and scriptwriting, huh? As is often the case, the wording in the report is rather vague, which may or may not be on purpose, making it difficult to predict Embracer's actual intentions. Will they use AIs to check grammar in their scripts and quickly turn ideas into concepts, or should we expect Embracer to crank the soullessness of its titles up to 11 and start churning out ChatGPT-written games with Midjourney-generated visuals? Your guess is as good as mine.
And as for Embracer's claim that they don't intend to replace their workforce with robots, while there's currently absolutely no reason to distrust them, history suggests that when execs begin advocating for AI to streamline workflows, it typically signals impending layoffs. Whether this time will be any different is once again unclear.
So, what do you think about Embracer pushing the AI agenda? How will the quality of their games change? How will it affect the company's carbon-based employees? Tell us in the comments!
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