After it was announced that incoming Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma comes from a background in AI, many wondered and worried about what this could mean for the future of Xbox. After all, a recent study of game developers found that more developers than ever think generative AI is bad for gaming.
She told Variety in an interview that she has "no tolerance for bad AI." Before this, in a memo to staff, Sharma said, "We will not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop."
It remains to be seen what any of this means in practice, however. What some may call "bad AI" or "soulless AI slop" might be seen differently by different people, after all.
For what it's worth, Microsoft said years ago that it wanted to put AI into every product it makes, and both Sharma's predecessor Phil Spencer and outgoing Xbox president Sarah Bond spoke enthusiastically about AI in game development for Xbox going forward, so this is not a new thing.
Sharma also recently responded to accusations that her X account was actually run by AI, pushing back with a silly reference to being a robot.
Also in the Variety interview, Sharma briefly discussed the kinds of games she hopes to see Microsoft make under her watch. She said he wants to help her teams build games with "deep emotional resonance" and a "distinct point of view." She pointed to 2016's Firewatch as an example of a game that makes people "feel something."
Sharma worked at Microsoft from 2011-2013 in a marketing role before helping create the company Porch Group from 2013-2017. She then joined Meta to become the VP of product and engineering for the popular Messenger service. In 2021, she joined Instacart as its COO and helped take it public.
Shen then re-joined Microsoft in 2024 as the president of the CoreAI product, a division of the technology giant that worked on a variety of AI products. In addition to her role as CEO of Microsoft Gaming today, Sharma is on the board of directors at The Home Depot and Coupang.
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She told Variety in an interview that she has "no tolerance for bad AI." Before this, in a memo to staff, Sharma said, "We will not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop."
It remains to be seen what any of this means in practice, however. What some may call "bad AI" or "soulless AI slop" might be seen differently by different people, after all.
For what it's worth, Microsoft said years ago that it wanted to put AI into every product it makes, and both Sharma's predecessor Phil Spencer and outgoing Xbox president Sarah Bond spoke enthusiastically about AI in game development for Xbox going forward, so this is not a new thing.
Sharma also recently responded to accusations that her X account was actually run by AI, pushing back with a silly reference to being a robot.
Also in the Variety interview, Sharma briefly discussed the kinds of games she hopes to see Microsoft make under her watch. She said he wants to help her teams build games with "deep emotional resonance" and a "distinct point of view." She pointed to 2016's Firewatch as an example of a game that makes people "feel something."
Sharma worked at Microsoft from 2011-2013 in a marketing role before helping create the company Porch Group from 2013-2017. She then joined Meta to become the VP of product and engineering for the popular Messenger service. In 2021, she joined Instacart as its COO and helped take it public.
Shen then re-joined Microsoft in 2024 as the president of the CoreAI product, a division of the technology giant that worked on a variety of AI products. In addition to her role as CEO of Microsoft Gaming today, Sharma is on the board of directors at The Home Depot and Coupang.
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