CD Projekt Red CEO Discusses AI's Role in Gam

The Witcher and Cyberpunk developer CD Projekt Red is the latest company to sound off on the use of AI in gaming. During CD Projekt Red's latest earnings briefing, Joint CEO Michał Nowakowski said there are "meaningful" and "real" benefits to using the technology.

The company is already implementing such technologies "mainly in the productivity areas" and so far that's where the "largest benefits" have stemmed from, he explained, as reported by GamesRadar. A developer won't be able to use AI to make an entire game, though, and humans will remain essential to the process, he said.

The benefits are real, they're meaningful; but it's not a situation—and I'm unaware of such a situation—where AI could 'sit down and make games.' That's our take. It doesn't mean it's not gonna be useful, but it's not gonna be making The Witcher 5, or 6, or anything like that, Nowakowski explained.

Nowakowski also pushed back against the idea that the mass layoffs happening in the video game industry today are due to AI's acceleration. Instead, he said the cuts are largely the result of games being canceled. Some studios have been going through turmoil; there were some project closures and so on, which led to many redundancies in the gaming industry; we've all seen that—it's been very dramatic in many cases. But, literally kill me here, but I don't recall a single time when it would be attributable directly to AI. At least I don't know about that.

And looking to the future, if AI is adopted more broadly, Nowakowski does not believe it will lead to net job losses overall. I don't imagine that, he said. This perspective suggests that AI will augment rather than replace human workers, potentially creating new opportunities even as it changes how some tasks are performed.

This echoes what others have said, pointing to previous labor revolutions that impacted some jobs in the short term but boosted total employment overall on a longer timeline. Recently, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said workers whose job is "the task" may be at the greatest risk. This distinction between task-based work and more complex, creative work is crucial to understanding how AI might impact different roles in game development.

The AI issue continues to be controversial, in part because of how the term is defined. Developers have been using versions of AI to make games for decades, after all. One of the newest forms of AI is generative AI, and it is baked into products that many game developers use, including Unreal Engine and Photoshop, among others. Recently, Larian's CEO drew backlash for his comments on how the developer might use AI, and he plans to answer more questions about this in January.

CD Projekt Red's perspective on AI reflects a pragmatic approach that acknowledges both the potential benefits and limitations of the technology. By focusing on productivity improvements rather than replacement of human creativity, the company positions itself as using AI as a tool to enhance development rather than fundamentally change the creative process.

The distinction between using AI for productivity tasks versus creative work is important for understanding how the technology might evolve in game development. While AI can assist with repetitive tasks, code generation, or asset creation, the creative vision, storytelling, and overall game design remain firmly in human hands according to Nowakowski's assessment.

As the gaming industry continues to grapple with AI implementation, perspectives like CD Projekt Red's provide valuable context for understanding how major studios are approaching the technology. The emphasis on productivity benefits while maintaining human creativity suggests a balanced approach that could serve as a model for other developers.

The ongoing debate about AI in game development will likely continue as the technology evolves and becomes more integrated into development tools. Companies like CD Projekt Red will continue to experiment with AI applications while maintaining their commitment to human-driven creative processes, creating a hybrid approach that leverages technology without sacrificing the artistic vision that makes games compelling.