According to Decrypt, Microsoft is partnering with Inworld AI, one of its M12 venture arm's portfolio companies, to develop an artificial intelligence (AI) toolkit for Xbox game developers. The toolkit will enable developers to use AI for generating game dialogue and narrative tools. It will offer an AI 'design copilot' and an AI character runtime engine, as mentioned in a Microsoft blog post published on Monday. The design copilot will convert user-generated prompts into game scripts, dialogue trees, and quests, while the character engine can create new stories and be integrated into the game client.
Xbox General Manager of Gaming AI Haiyan Zhang stated that their goal is to provide state-of-the-art AI tools for game developers of any size. Microsoft plans to collaborate and innovate with game creators inside Xbox studios and third-party studios to develop tools that meet their needs and inspire new possibilities for future games. The AI tools are framed as helpful resources that game developers can use to improve their games and empower themselves.
Generative AI powered by large language models (LLMs) is relatively new in the gaming industry. As more dialogue-generating AI tools like Microsoft and Inworld's AI toolkit or Ubisoft's Ghostwriter AI tool are developed for the video games industry, it raises questions about the potential impact on the jobs of narrative designers and game writers. These tools could enable writers to create more stories faster or could result in unnatural dialogue and fewer writing jobs overall.
Microsoft has outlined its ethical stance on and approach to AI development through its 'Responsible AI Standard' and a dedicated section on its website focusing on advancing AI while maintaining ethical principles. In August, Inworld AI raised $50 million in Series A funding from investors including Microsoft's M12 fund, bringing Inworld's valuation to over $500 million.