Electronic Arts is making big claims about how it leverages AI for its business, as it looks to keep current projects on track, according to the presentation executives made during this year's Investor Day. CEO Andrew Wilson stressed the importance of AI, noting that "this remarkable technology is not merely a buzzword for us; it's the very core of our business."
Wilson explained that AI is helping with three key areas, which are efficiency, expansion, and transformation. The company is achieving efficiency as AI allows it to iterate more frequently with lower costs. Meanwhile, expansion will supposedly come from being able to tell more personalized stories that resonate with more players with help from AI. Lastly, transformation refers to how future gaming experiences can be crafted in ways that "aren't imagined today."
Laura Miele, EA's President of Entertainment and Technology, followed up Wilson by demoing some of the AI tools the company is working on. One tool was a chatbot that Miele interacted with to quickly protype a model of a building based on the description provided. The resulting building was a bit rough around the edges, but it could potentially be completed by a human artist or possibly provide that artist with a solid starting point. Miele emphasized that tools such as this are very much in early concept stages.
Although, perhaps this commentary from EA execs should really be taken with a grain of salt. This isn't the first time the company, with this same CEO, has made bold claims about how it's using technology to change the way it operates. Back in 2021 during the era of NFTs and blockchain, Wilson made similar statements, touting that these technologies were the future, and that EA was ready to capitalize on their use. However, EA didn't end up making or releasing anything of note utilizing either of these technologies.
The company's track record and concept-only AI tools make it difficult to predict just how this will all shake out. Hopefully developers and players alike end up benefitting as much as EA executives are claiming they will someday.