A current report mentioned Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella was at one level mulling the potential for shuttering the Xbox division. Earlier than this, Microsoft’s personal co-founder Paul Allen’s funding firm known as for Microsoft to dump Xbox and spin it off as a separate enterprise. That by no means occurred, and now Nadella is talking as much as specific Microsoft’s dedication to gaming. He informed Dwarkesh Patel that it isn’t true that Microsoft’s investments in gaming is a part of some type of “means to another finish.”
Microsoft has an extended historical past of supporting gaming, Nadella identified, referencing how Microsoft Flight Simulator was a Microsoft product earlier than the corporate even made the primary model of Home windows.
“So, gaming has obtained an extended historical past on the firm, and we need to be in gaming for gaming’s sake. I at all times begin by saying I hate to be in companies the place they’re means to another finish. They must be ends unto themselves,” he mentioned.
Nadella’s feedback got here in response to a query about if Nadella had some type of “premonition” about how gaming might assist contribute to Microsoft’s push into the factitious intelligence house by utilizing video games to coach its fashions.
“We’re an organization the place we’ve to carry all these property collectively and be higher homeowners by including worth. For instance, cloud gaming is a pure factor for us to spend money on as a result of that may simply develop the TAM [Total Addressable Market] and develop the flexibility for folks to play video games all over the place,” he mentioned.
Nadella went on to say that Microsoft’s new investments into gaming-focused AI with its Muse expertise may be useful to permit Microsoft’s sport staff to make video games quicker and extra effectively.
“As the largest, world’s largest writer, this might be useful. However on the identical time, we have to provide great-quality video games. I imply, you may’t be a gaming writer with out, kind of, in the beginning being targeted on that,” he mentioned.
Microsoft’s new Muse expertise is what the corporate claims is the world’s first “world and human motion mannequin” that’s skilled proper now on Ninja Concept’s deserted sport Bleeding Edge. Ninja Concept has mentioned Muse will not be use to make video games, however as a substitute to assist empower people to work quicker.
“I take into consideration gaming information as maybe, , what YouTube is maybe to Google, gaming information is to Microsoft. And so due to this fact I am enthusiastic about that,” Nadella mentioned.
AI is a controversial expertise throughout the gaming house and throughout quite a few different companies. A current GDC examine discovered that almost all of sport studios worldwide use generative AI already, regardless of considerations concerning the expertise. Microsoft itself has gone on report saying developments to AI will result in job losses within the quick time period however might result in extra alternatives in the long run. Microsoft laid off greater than 2,500 folks up to now 12 months in gaming roles, although whether or not or not the discount had something to do with AI is unknown. Online game voice actors have additionally gone on strike resulting from considerations about AI.