Take-Two Interactive, publisher and parent company of Rockstar Games, has made layoffs among its team dedicated to researching and implementing artificial intelligence.
Most notably, the head of AI at the company, Luke Dicken, has been let go, along with an undisclosed number of people within the division.
Dicken shared this news on LinkedIn, where he appeals for others to consider his teammates for open roles elsewhere in the industry.
"It’s truly disappointing that I have to share with you that my time with T2 - and that of my team - has come to an end," he writes.
"We’ve been developing cutting edge technology to support game development now for 7 years. These folks know how to match innovation and novel problem solving approaches with strong product design chops to create systems that empower people throughout the development workflow."
This news comes after public commentary about generative AI from Take-Two's CEO, Strauss Zelnick, who believes the technology can aid game development but not supersede it.
He has said the idea that the tech will be able to simply generate mega-hits like GTA 6 is "laughable".
Still, it seems the publisher is investing a certain amount into AI and finding ways it can benefit the workflow of the studios in its ranks.
As reported by Kotaku, Zelnick has told investors that the publisher is "actively embracing" generative AI.
"We have hundreds of pilots and implementations across our company, including with our studios, and we are seeing opportunities to drive efficiencies, reduce costs, and create the opportunity to do what digital technology has always allowed, which is, mundane tasks become easier and less relevant, which frees up our creators to do the more interesting tasks of making superb entertainment," he said.
In fairness, this lines up with what he's said previously; he believes there's potential in the tech to support and aid game dev, and while it can't just create a game at the push of a button, there are ways it may benefit the broader process of making games.
Generative AI is a controversial topic, and something the industry will continue to wrestle with as its limits continue to be tested.
Nvidia has faced a huge amount of backlash against its DLSS 5 tech due to dramatic visual changes beyond other upscale tools.
ARC Raiders has had ongoing criticism for its inclusion of AI-generated assets in the game, although the team behind it has since been replacing some AI voices with genuine human performances.