Netflix reveals new GenAI for Games department with bizarre image of roads going nowhere

NETFLIX has added a number of excellent mobile games to its standard subscription and it’s been expanding its gaming sector over the past few years.

It’s purchased a number of studios and commissioned games based on its most popular TV shows, as well as getting big named games released on the platform.

Mike Verdu via LinkedIn

This bizarre image is supposed to give us faith in generative AI games[/caption]

Netflix’s games have had mixed popularity, with hits and misses, just like most publishers.

However, it was recently announced that Netflix is investing in a new GenAI for Games department, that will be working on games made with generative AI.

The vice president of the newly created department, Mike Verdu, made an announcement on LinkedIn about his new role.

Fans are confused by the announcement, which is filled with a lot of tech jargon and is difficult to understand.

Verdu wrote: “At long last, I am ready to talk about what I’m doing next: I am working on driving a “once in a generation” inflection point for game development and player experiences using generative AI. 

“This transformational technology will accelerate the velocity of development and unlock truly novel game experiences that will surprise, delight, and inspire players. 

“As for me, I am ready for the next big challenge after the raw primordial act of creation. 

“GenAI is that next challenge. I don’t think I’ve been this excited about an opportunity in this industry since the 90s, when we saw a new game launch every few months that redefined what was possible. 

“It was an incredible time to be making games as talented creators showed all of us what the future looked like. 

“Guess what? We’re back to those days of seemingly unlimited potential and the rapid pace of innovation, which resulted in mind-blowing surprises for players every few months.”

The announcement was made alongside an image made using generative AI, which contains those classic AI hallmarks.

The road in the middle turns into a river, there are roads going nowhere, and everything doesn’t quite make sense.

Artificial Inaccuracy

Over the past year, we’ve all been exposed to AI images as they become more common, particularly in social media.

Facebook ‘slop’ is what people most commonly associate with AI. These are weird images of Jesus, soldiers and babies, posted on the platform with unrelated tags like ‘beautiful cabin crew’.

For the average person, generative AI is making people’s lives harder, with social media feeds filled with these fake images, AI songs filling up Spotify playlists, and AI websites giving false information.

Particularly with generative AI in its current state and how it has exhausted all the material it can learn from, it’s hard to see how it will ever be an improvement on what humans are capable of.

If you want to read more about tech, check out how Assassin’s Creed developer Ubisoft launched an NFT game.