{
  "id": 3950055,
  "title": "\"Somebody will make the Half-Life 2 of AI\" - after the Rideshare controversy, Saber CCO says something will come along and \"change people's minds\" about gen-AI",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/somebody-will-make-the-half-life-2-of-ai-after-the-rideshare",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-08-28T11:04:23.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Eurogamer",
    "slug": "eurogamer",
    "url": "https://www.eurogamer.net/saber-half-life-2-gen-ai-rideshare-controversy"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Saber Interactive's CEO, Matthew Karch, recently acknowledged that the company will eventually adopt generative AI technology, despite recent controversy surrounding its use in the Rideshare taxi game. Karch stated that while the company doesn't currently use AI across all projects, they are experimenting with it on Rideshare. The game employs AI to generate voices, localisation, and radio station music, as well as for mission generation and localized dialogue in an optional free ride mode.\n\nKarch emphasized the importance of exploring new technologies like AI, even if they provoke strong reactions and industry shifts. He highlighted that his focus remains on leveraging these tools to create better experiences and adapting the workforce for the future. Willits, Saber's chief creative officer, added that the Rideshare experiment is small and experimental, and that the studio doesn't use AI across all projects due to the associated risks.\n\nOther studios have faced similar debates regarding AI usage. Assassin's Creed creator Patrice Désilets, Owlcat, and The Blood of Dawnwalker director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz have all expressed interest in exploring AI tools in their projects. Even game developers like Larian have used AI during concept art phases.\n\nDespite the controversy surrounding AI, Willits remains optimistic that someone will create a game that will change people's minds about the technology. He compared the initial skepticism towards Steam to the eventual widespread adoption and importance of the platform.",
  "summary": "Saber Interactive made headlines recently when its boss had an ugly spat with a former employee about the company's use of gen-AI in taxi game Rideshare Stimulator . Matthew Karch, Saber's co-founder and CEO, since apologised, and made sure Rideshare got proper AI disclosure labels on Steam. But a larger question mark over Saber's approach to gen-AI remained. Read more",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}