EA Reveal Future Plans & Are All-In On Generative AI

Electronic Arts‘ September 17th Investor Day presentation largely showcased the appeal of artificial intelligence technology within the company’s projects.

AI is being sold not only as a tool for upcoming experiences but also as a piece of untapped value they intend to capitalize on.

Imagine using AI to create a custom map in a shooter like XDefiant or having custom NPC responses to user-prompted dialogue in Mass Effect. While this is all very experimental, EA has a clear plan to use this technology to improve consumer experiences.

For many, this new fabled technology indicates what’s to come, and for others, it’s a glaring red flag threatening to take humanity out of the art form of video games.

Regardless, here are all the innovations EA has just announced and what we, as players, should expect.

EA’s Plans For Generative AI

At the beginning of this presentation on AI, speaker Mihir Vaidya tells us to remember the invention of niche video entertainment on the internet, such as YouTube, which evolved into a massively successful industry. We are then told that AI technology could similarly unlock a whole new consumer market.

While it may be hard to swallow, EA CEO Andrew Wilson has remained adamant that “AI is at the very core of our business,” with the company taking considerable steps to do so.

Vaidya presents the technology with three main uses: creativity for players within the gameplay, more believable characters, and, lastly, a combination of the two, where you interact within an AI world alongside online friends.

The first use is when you tell a prompt what type of game you want to play, and the program instantly creates it in a sandbox like Fortnite’s creative mode.

While it looks primitive in the showcase, it could later use an entire library of resources from other EA titles, allowing players immense possibilities.

We’ve seen the second innovation in a few indie games and in 2023 from NVIDIA, where NPC characters are given ChatGPT-like AI abilities to talk to players.

Lastly, we’re shown a brand new combined use within a conceptual experience called Project Air. In this experience, you interact and create AI characters within a mobile digital world and can then share them and your interactions alongside friends.

While conceptual, it seems like a weird mix of social media and video games that EA understands hasn’t found a place yet in the new market but has potential if it grows and adapts over time.

Tip Of The Iceberg, Or Doomed Like Titanic

While this whole presentation is pretty nuanced and understands that recent advancements aren’t entirely applicable within the modern market, the description of them as a “tip of the iceberg” could be seen as a bit flawed.

For creative player options, we’ve custom-mapped 3D levels and game modes since Doom in the 90s. For AI storytelling, look to experiences like AI Dungeon, which has been around since 2019 and creates a unique AI DND experience for the player.

The latest technology may be the start of what’s to come. Yet, the first two examples of AI integration in gameplay and characters are really only deviations from gameplay elements that have already been seemingly perfected in other games, just with an AI twist.

Not to mention, this will only develop the debate on the ethics of AI implementation in the gaming and tech industry: whether it will take more jobs than it creates and whether the products formed under it will be of lower quality.

EA’s Grand Solution

But here’s the deal: EA knows this, and their example of Project Air is their exact solution to making something untapped by anyone else and incapable of non-AI systems. But their elevator pitch of it being the new YouTube is just as hard to grasp.

It’s a bit pessimistic, but creating an entirely new market online is likely much more difficult than just implementing basic generative AI. We’ve previously seen projects like the Metaverse or Google Stadia try to create an innovative place within the entertainment market and not catch on.

We’re already seeing EA implement this AI functionality in games like Sims 4, for better or worse. Although many recent implementations are more subtle features than game-selling, they are sure signs of what EA plans to be the industry’s future.

If it genuinely pans out as a success for the investors EA pitched it to at this presentation, we’ll just have to wait and see.