Nintendo has denied reports that it’s lobbying against the use of generative AI in its home country of Japan.
On Saturday, Satoshi Asano, a politician and member of Japan’s House of Representatives, posted on social media that Nintendo was “avoiding using generative AI to protect its IP” and also “engaging in lobbying activities with the government.”
The claim sparked Nintendo into the unprecedented step of publishing a formal denial.
“Contrary to recent discussions on the internet, Nintendo has not had any contact with the Japanese government about generative AI,” the company said. “Whether generative AI is involved or not, we will continue to take necessary actions against infringement of our intellectual property rights.”
Asano later retracted his claim and published an apology. “I deeply regret my own failure to verify the facts adequately,” he wrote.
Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser spoke about the company’s thoughts on AI in an interview published earlier this year.
“If we think about just technology in general to start with, as we look at technology we always want to make sure the technology we may be leveraging , whether it is to develop our games [or] in our devices , it’s going to create a better gameplay experience,” Bowser said in conversation with CNBC (via Eurogamer).
“It starts there… that’s a very important part of our decision making process, and how to use AI.”
The use of generative AI is a significant pressure point in many creative industries, including video games, with tools such as Midjourney being criticised by some who perceive them as replacing professional artists and using their work without permission for their training set.
According to the latest GDC State of the Game Industry survey, nearly 50% of developers say that generative AI tools are being used at their workplace, while 84% say they’re concerned about their use.
Steam games disclosing the use of generative AI have increased by 800% so far this year, according to an analysis of games published this summer.
