Sony lays out its AI plan for PlayStation: ‘We believe AI will unleash the creativity of our studios’

Sony has laid out its plan for the use of AI in PlayStation game development and committed to its implementation going forward.

During Sony’s presentation for its latest financial results, Sony Interactive Entertainment president and CEO Hideaki Nishino explained how he believes AI will strengthen the company’s efforts in game creation.

“At PlayStation, our goal is always to be the best place to play and the best place to publish,” Nishino said. “We see AI as a powerful tool to help us in this mission.

“For our players, this will mean a gaming experience like never before. More immersion, more adventures, and fresh ways to enjoy their favorite characters. For our publishers, this will mean an even more efficient production environment and a better discovery to ensure their games reach the right audiences.”

According to Nishino, AI will “lower the barriers to creation” and accelerate development cycles, “enabling more creators to enter the market”. As a result, Sony expects “a meaningful increase in the volume and diversity of the content available to the players”.

Nishino stated that PlayStation Studios teams are already using AI tools for automating certain processes. “Within our studios, game developers are automating repetitive workloads, improving software engineering productivity, and accelerating areas like quality assurance, 3D modeling, and animations through new AI power tools,” he explained.

“For example, our teams created a tool we call Mockingbird that quickly animates 3D facial models based on the performance capture. Importantly, we’re not replacing human performers, but rather optimizing how we process the data from these live captures. With Mockingbird, animation work that would have taken hours can now be completed in a fraction of a second.”

He continued: “We’ve already seen the teams at Naughty Dog, San Diego Studio, and others adapt our tools, including in released titles like Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered. Another example is the tool we built for animating hair. This is often a labor-intensive process, given the volume of strands that must be created. Our teams have accelerated this process by taking videos of real hairstyles and having an AI tool output a 3D model, with hundreds of strand models.

“These practical applications allow our teams to spend less time on manual, high effort tasks, and to instead reinvest their time into building richer worlds and gameplay for our players.”

Nishino claimed that as well as making game development more efficient, AI can also offer “new types of experiences for fans”, citing Gran Tusimo’s AI-powered racing agent Sophy, which he said “has added a level of competitive gameplay for even our most seasoned drivers”.

“Taking this further, our world-class creatives have already shown the ability to create amazing prototypes where NPCs with their own personalities can create a living, dynamic world for the players to explore,” he said.

One of the main concerns players have about the growth of AI in game development is the use of generational AI in creating assets and concept art. Presumably addressing this, Nishino stated that the role of Sony’s creators will remain the top priority.

“The vision, the design, and the emotional impact of our games will always come from the talent of our studios and performers,” he said. “AI is meant to augment their capabilities, not to replace them.”

Beyond the games themselves, Nishino said Sony is also currently using AI for its PlayStation business, including the PlayStation Store.

“AI is also already a part of our platform business,” he said. “To take one example, over the last few years, AI-powered tools ensure that transactions are routed efficiently over payment networks, generating over $700 million of incremental revenue.

“We are building on this success with ongoing projects that will use machine learning to provide the best value possible to our customers. As AI brings more choices to players than ever, the value of our platform will lie in its ability to recommend and personalize at scale.

“We’ve already seen how AI models contribute to manual operation, and this will continue to improve. Our AI capabilities will evolve into a consumer-centric experience that not only suggests the next game a player might enjoy, but also the next gameplay moment, subscription, accessory, or merchandise that best reflects their passion.”

He also cited the recently updated PSSR feature on PS5 Pro, which “uses machine learning to enhance image quality, delivering 4K visuals at high frame rates”, stating: “With PSSR, games like Saros and Ghost of Yotei have never looked sharper.”

Nishino concluded: “Through our investments in AI and machine learning, we will continue to push the fidelity frontier forward. We believe AI will unleash the creativity of our studios, power a more curated platform, and enhance the PlayStation experience for both players and creators.

“With our global player base, deep library of IP, and integrated ecosystem, AI is a powerful tool for us to deliver a truly cutting-edge entertainment experience.”