Head of Amazon Games says AI won't lead to net job losses in the video game industry

Christoph Hartmann, head of Amazon Games, shared a controversial take on AI in game development in an interview with IGN earlier this week, asserting that AI will not lead to net job losses and can enhance the creative process.

The details:

• In comments that are certain to stoke the AI-in-gaming debate, Hartmann noted that the technology would mainly "help us to streamline processes so hand-done work will go fast," focusing on eliminating mundane tasks rather than creative roles. He emphasized the potential for AI to reduce game development cycles, stating, "Ideally we can get it down to three years so we can iterate more, which then will bring the budgets down a little bit."
• Despite recent layoffs at Amazon Games and across the video game industry, Hartmann believes new technology like AI has historically led to new job creation. He explained, "Technology always, always has done that," suggesting that while AI may alter the types of jobs available, it won’t lead to net job losses.
• Hartmann also expressed his belief that AI will facilitate quicker development times. "It's us predicting—especially in a fast-moving world—what the zeitgeist is going to be in five years," he said, indicating that AI could help game developers better align with rapidly changing consumer tastes. He was clear about AI's limitations in creative roles, however, commenting, "The machine might get very close. I don't know what you think, but I don't think it will be able to translate those unique things into fresh ideas. If you find AI designing games, the game's going to be all the same."
• The ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike highlights concerns about AI's role in performance capture and voice acting. While Hartmann naturally did not want to delve deeply into the controversy, he perhaps did still manage to slip up when stating, "And especially for games, we don't really have acting..."
  

Other recent Amazon news:

• Amazon Games has announced the opening of a new studio in Bucharest, Romania, which will be led by a former Ubisoft director.
• Amazon is working on a TV show based on Sega's Like A Dragon (formerly known as Yakuza in the West) game series, which will arrive later this year.