Hasbro CEO Confirms Company Has ‘Already Been Using AI’

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Hasbro CEO Confirms Company Has 'Already Been Using AI'

Key Takeaways

  • Hasbro’s CEO revealed AI use in Wizards of the Coast products, contradicting previous denials.
  • Investors were assured AI would be used responsibly, though many artists worry about plagiarism and its impact.
  • Despite reaffirming its anti-AI stance, Wizards of the Coast appears to be in conflict with Hasbro over AI’s future.

As a long-time fan of Dungeons and Dragons and Magic: The Gathering, I must say I find myself both intrigued and concerned by recent developments at Wizards of the Coast. On one hand, the potential for AI to enhance our gaming experience is tantalizing – imagine being able to generate unique, immersive scenarios or characters with just a few clicks! But on the other, as an artist who’s spent countless hours crafting my own worlds and characters, I can’t help but worry about the impact of AI on the creative process.

The leader of Hasbro has unexpectedly disclosed that the corporation has initiated the integration of Artificial Intelligence into the creation of Wizards of the Coast goods, encompassing games like Dungeons and Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. This statement follows a period of debate over AI’s application in Hasbro and Wizards of Coast products, despite earlier assurances that such actions would not occur.

For a while now, the branch of Hasbro known as Wizards of the Coast, has found itself in several disputes concerning AI-created artwork used in their tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) Dungeons & Dragons and trading card game (TCG) Magic: The Gathering. Consequently, Wizards of the Coast has decided to prohibit the application of generative AI in producing both the art and text for these games.

Contrary to what might appear to be the case, Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks has revealed that AI is already being utilized within their development processes. During a Goldman Sachs Communacopia tech conference, Cocks stated that AI is widely used among Dungeons and Dragons players for campaign development, character development, and generating story ideas. He suggested potential applications of AI, such as creating stories, enabling users to generate content, and streamlining the new player experience not only in Dungeons and Dragons but also across multiple Hasbro brands.

History of Wizards of the Coast AI Controversies

  • August 2023 – AI art is detected in Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants. Wizards of the Coast removes illustrations and affirms its stance against AI art.
  • October 2023 – Replacement art for Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants is revealed.
  • December 2023 – Art from the 2024 Player’s Handbook is erroneously accused of being AI-generated. Wizards of the Coast reaffirms its stance against AI art.
  • January 2024 – AI art discovered in Magic: The Gathering ad. Wizards of the Coast denies AI was used, then admits it was wrong a couple of days later.
  • May 2024 – Wizards of the Coast updates its contributor policy to ban AI in the use of finished products. Simultaneously, Hasbro posts job listing for a principal AI engineer for Wizards of the Coast.

During the same discourse, Cocks reassured the crowd that Hasbro would employ AI ethically and ensure fair compensation for creators’ works, but a significant number of artists remain skeptical about this possibility. The reason being, developers need to train generative AI using pre-existing works. Consequently, numerous artists have criticized this practice as plagiarism, as it jeopardizes their careers due to the speed and cost-effectiveness of using AI instead of hiring actual artists or writers directly.

Within our development process, we’ve been incorporating AI technology quite extensively. Interestingly enough, in my weekly Dungeons & Dragons games with around 30-40 individuals, I can confidently say that everyone is leveraging AI – either for campaign creation, character building, or generating story ideas. This strong trend suggests that we should wholeheartedly adopt it.

Just a short while following the conference, Wizards of the Coast released a fresh FAQ, reinforcing their stance against AI in art for games like “Magic: The Gathering” and “Dungeons & Dragons”. They emphasize that both companies and individuals are prone to errors. “Our stance on generative AI in ‘Magic: The Gathering’ and ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ art has been consistent, and we wish to inform our community that we are actively working towards upholding this commitment, while acknowledging that we may sometimes trip along the way,” they added.

Similar to past declarations, this statement appears to contradict Cocks’ statements made during the conference regarding Hasbro’s company stance on AI in Dungeons & Dragons and beyond. Given the seeming inconsistency between the Hasbro CEO’s intentions and Wizards of the Coast’s vision for AI, fans are encouraged to voice their opinions to ensure that game development aligns with their preferences and continued support.

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2024-09-13 23:23