Today, as part of Take-Two Interactive Software’s second quarter 2027 earnings call, Strauss Zelnick answered questions from investors after presenting the company’s financial results. One speaker expressed concern about AI, particularly the proliferation of AI-based compilations and decompilations, which have sparked piracy concerns among publishers in recent weeks.
Zelnick notes that “the video games industry has been largely immune to piracy” thanks to factors such as file sizes, the operation of console ecosystems, and aspects related to the online nature of the games industry. That said, Strauss continues, AI poses a threat to the industry. However, it assures attentive investors that Take-Two is appropriately stepping up its measures against bad faith actors using artificial intelligence.
Watch on YouTube
“We are completely focused on strengthening our technical defenses and appropriately improving our legal business. And – at the same time, without any cavalier attitude – every entertainment business that exists is subject to an element of piracy, (and) that is likely to invade our business to a greater or lesser extent. I think that will be manageable and we are focused on that.”
Zelnick returns to AI again later in the call, where an investor again asks about AI, apparently wanting to know if the CEO believes it can provide GTA 6 developer Rockstar with any “competitive advantage” in the games industry. Given Zelnick’s previous comments on the subject, his response wasn’t a complete surprise.
“It’s always been true (that technology benefits us),” Zelnick says. “We’ve always created our entertainment on the computer through technology. All the advances have benefited us, and I don’t expect that to change – in fact, I hope it will accelerate. I think at the same time, what we’re known for (at Take-Two) is the desire to create the best entertainment on Earth. And, more often than not, we’ve succeeded – and the creativity that drives that success is human creativity leveraging technology. And I think that’s what you will also see in the future.
“Without a doubt, some of the more recent technological advancements you’ve seen have made it easier to create assets. It’s all consistent with the history of our company. When I started in interactive entertainment (longer ago than I’d like to say), it was really difficult to create an asset in a computer. Today it’s a lot easier – but you know what’s not easier? Achieving a big hit. Achieving a big hit was hard back then, and it’s difficult now, and it’s going to be difficult in the future. And creating success remains the responsibility of human beings.
This is not the first case of skepticism towards AI from Strauss Zelnick. In March, he flatly rejected the idea that AI could tackle games on the scale of GTA 6. Elsewhere in the call, the Take-Two CEO reiterated how well GTA 6 is tracking by reaffirming that pre-order numbers are well above expectations, and promised that the game’s success will “set a new benchmark” for Take-Two’s games business.
Gn tech
