The current U.S. Congresswoman Ro Khanna has narrowly defined his argument about artificial intelligence and video games to the ongoing issue concerning Call of Duty: Black Ops 7. The most current edition of the popular videogame franchise by Treyarch and Raven Software is facing quite a lot of bad press for its campaign and user ratings, but the real problem now is the AI-generated materials, especially finding their way into what should be in-game calling cards-and that has sustained the players’ and developers’ ire. This will now add the weight of Silicon Valley congressmanto leverage against an atmosphere already conditioned for high-profile public expression on technology regulation.
The Californian Democrat set forth a call to regulate, on social media, the AI by the corporations to the service of their employees. The major issue, according to Khanna, is not in the large companies misusing this technology to cut costs but in replacing human artists, not in paring down existing headcounts. He added that currently employed artists in development studios must ultimately gain some voice in and agency over how AI tools are being used so that their works aren’t made more prone to automated handling at the detriment of their creative control.
Indeed, the widening fissure across the entire industry spurred by such new revelations increases their topical worth, as Black Ops 7 fills itself on fewer assets. There is, however, a clear reminder with Khanna’s comment that every AI-made item potentially represents a commission or a job that could have gone to a human artist. The fiasco follows other recent dissonances in the industry when, for instance, Subnautica 2 publisher Krafton came under fire after reports indicated the company was restructuring toward an “AI-first” operation by buying out employee contracts. And these incidents emphasize quickening pace of implementing creative work into automation.
It is only a matter of time before the issue continues to fuel demands for legislative oversight. Representative Khanna casts such reference by making a very political statement, throwing the debate beyond fan forums and development studios onto the desks of lawmakers. Finding the balanced, references during such times of rapid change in technology to benefit from it while protecting the human worker’s livelihoods is quickly becoming one of the biggest challenges facing the entertainment and technology industries today.
