The gaming industry, particularly in areas such as player experience and content generation, is being transformed by the advent of advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies. This was the primary topic of discussion in a recent podcast hosted by Mary O’Brien, featuring special guests Gary Greenstein, a technology transactions partner at Wilson Sonsini, and Tiffany Georgievski, a SonyAI attorney and a former Wilson Sonsini associate.
The podcast sheds light on various aspects of the implications and uses of AI in the gaming world. The conversation covers Georgievski’s career trajectory leading to her focus on AI, an introduction to Generative AI, a comprehensive history and application of AI within the gaming industry, and the potential legal risks associated with it.
Generative AI, a subset of artificial intelligence, opens up endless possibilities for gaming development. In the podcast, Georgievski provides an illuminating primer on this topic. The technology is capable of creating content autonomously, including game characters, dialogues, storylines, and even entire game environments. This means that, in the near future, one could expect games to deliver a more personalized and immersive experience, forever evolving as per the player’s actions.
The deeper integration of AI in gaming also means increased legal considerations. A significant portion of the discussion was dedicated to outlining these potential legal risks. One such risk revolves around intellectual property rights: Who owns the rights to AI-generated content? Can an AI be given the status of ‘author’? Other risks stem from data privacy issues, considering the vast amounts of personal data many AI systems require and process.
Legal professionals dealing with technology and IP laws might find this increasingly relevant as Generative AI and other such artificial intelligence technologies become more ubiquitous in the gaming industry, but also other entertainment and software industries. The legal industry needs to keep a close watch on these progressions and be ready to address the novel legal scenarios that are bound to arise.