Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has clarified how Xbox is currently using AI after it was reported that the company was pushing its employees to heavily use the controversial technology in their workflows.

The details:

As reported by IGN, during a panel at the Paley International Council Summit, Spencer confirmed that Xbox's current use of AI "is much more operational than it is in the creative space" and confirmed that it does not have a mandate in place for creatives. "On the creative side, I really leave it up to the teams," the CEO said. "I have found that creative teams will use tools that make their job easier when it makes their job easier, and any top-down mandate that 'Thou must use a certain tool'...is not really a path to success. I look at the teams, and we make tools available, and I kind of let it organically percolate."
Spencer went on to state that AI tools are mainly used for moderation, particularly in regards to text and voice chat on the Xbox platform. "It's now at a scale where you can't really moderate the safety of those with just people alone,” he explained. “The volume is too high. So we have AI that we use to make sure that the conversation and topics that are happening, and for protected child accounts and other things, and who gets to talk to those accounts to those people, is locked down by parents or guardians who are setting those controls.
The executive also stated that there is an interest in using AI for game discovery, such as recommending titles to users. Despite this, he added that there are no current plans to use the technology in production.
Back in August, it was reported that an AI mandate was implemented for employees at Candy Crush studio King, requiring them to use AI for almost every task. While Microsoft has not confirmed the situation, it is similar to situations at other major companies, with EA allegedly pressuring employees to use generative AI and other tools internally.

Xbox is not forcing AI technology on creatives despite reports, Phil Spencer clarifies