Valve has put out a statement on its website in regards to how Steam will handle games that use AI technology. In short, Steam will allow developers to publish games with AI-generated assets in them, provided they fill out a disclosure section.
Developers have to describe what kind of AI their game uses. There will be two categories: pre-generated AI and live-generated AI. In the disclosure section, the developer needs to promise that the game does not include illegal or copyright-infringing content. If approved, information about the title using AI will appear on the store page for the game. Users will also be able to report any illegal content in live-generated or pre-generated AI games.
In the statement, Valve also apologized for taking so long to come to a decision in regard to AI. The company explained that they needed time to research and discuss AI with game developers to better understand its usage and risks.
AI’s use in games and other art pieces has become a controversial subject in the industry. Most of the comments to Valve’s statement are mixed. Some people pointed out that it will lead to more “shovelware titles,” though others have rebutted that AI can unlock “endless possibilities” in games if used right. Comments also pointed out that Valve’s statement doesn’t cover training data rights, which means the AI in the game may have learned from stolen data.
You can read Steam’s full statement on its community page.
