After closing its AAA games development studio, Netflix Games VP transforms into the VP of GenAI for Games and the gobbledygook must flow: 'a creator-first vision… with AI being a catalyst and an accelerant'
In October 2022 Netflix announced an escalation in its gaming ambitions with the internal studio Team Blue, making some eye-catching hires from across the AAA industry including Chacko Sonny (ex-Blizzard) as studio head, Joseph Staten (ex-343 Industries) and Rafael Grassetti (ex-Sony Santa Monica). Mike Verdu was VP of Netflix Games and said they were out to «build the next big thing in gaming.»
Womp womp. Two years on, Netflix announced the closure of Team Blue without it having shipped anything of note, and the three big name hires mentioned above have all departed. But Mike Verdu remains, and has now become the VP for GenAI for Games at Netflix. And he wants you to know one thing: This all happened exactly as planned, OK, and generative AI is in fact a «once in a generation inflection point,» which is also how I feel these days when I get out of bed too quickly.
In a post on (where else) LinkedIn, Verdu says a whole lot without saying anything at all. In fact I wonder whether the wonders of generative AI may be behind the post, which is laden with out-of-context buzzwords and bereft of meaning.
«This transformational technology will accelerate the velocity of development and unlock truly novel game experiences that will surprise, delight, and inspire players,» says Verdu, or possibly his chatbot. «I am focused on a creator-first vision for AI, one that puts creative talent at the center, with AI being a catalyst and an accelerant.»
The great god AI will apparently «enable big game teams to move much faster,» so it's a bit of a pity Netflix just shuttered its only big game team. Verdu says Netflix Games built «a robust internal game studio» (does he know?), is now a «world class publishing organization» (citation needed), and has «increased game engagement by multiples.» Multiples of what, exactly: Nothing?
Trailing clouds of glory, Verdu is «ready for the next big challenge after the raw primordial act of creation» and, what do you know, «GenAI is that next
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