Nintendo Has No Plans to Use Generative AI in Its Games, Company President Says [CNET]

The company cites issues with intellectual property rights, and says its unique value “cannot be achieved through technology alone.”

Mario and Luigi aren’t jumping on the AI train. In a recent Q&A with investors, first reported upon by TweakTown, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa addressed the issue. While he noted that the technology can be creative, Furukawa told his audience that the company isn’t planning to use generative AI in its games.

“In the game industry, AI-like technology has long been used to control enemy character movements, so game development and AI technology have always been closely related,” Furukawa said, according to TweakTown. “Generative AI, which has been a hot topic in recent years, can be more creative, but we also recognize that it has issues with intellectual property rights.

“We have decades of know-how in creating optimal gaming experiences for our customers, and while we remain flexible in responding to technological developments, we hope to continue to deliver value that is unique to us and cannot be achieved through technology alone.”

A representative for Nintendo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

AI will inevitably affect the video-game industry. But as CNET’s David Lumb wrote after attending the Game Developers Conference in March, the technology hasn’t yet been added to every game. The biggest companies are exploring ways to use it, Lumb wrote, but still seem hesitant to commit to including AI in a major way in their plans. There’s been some movement. Microsoft is partnering with Inworld AI to develop AI game dialogue and narrative tools, and Nvidia and Ubisoft showed off their dynamically responding nonplayer characters at GDC 2024. But as Ohio State senior lecturer Neil Kirby told Lumb, the gaming industry may end up using generative AI in mundane ways, such as including it in production tools.