Take-Two Says Hit Game Creation Stays Human
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said game creation remains human work while the company scales defenses against AI-enabled piracy.
Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Artificial Intelligence
During Take-Two Interactive's Q2 2027 earnings call, CEO Strauss Zelnick said creating hit games remains the purview of human beings. He also said the company is scaling technical defenses and legal action against bad-faith actors using artificial intelligence.
Why it matters
Investors asked about AI-powered compilations and decompilations that have raised piracy concerns for publishers in recent weeks. Zelnick's remarks signal how a major U.S. publisher is weighing AI's role in both game development and content protection.
No hardware or software specifications were disclosed in the extraction. Zelnick did not provide technical metrics on Take-Two's anti-piracy systems or AI tools.
The players
Strauss Zelnick
Strauss Zelnick is the chief executive of Take-Two Interactive, one of the largest video game publishers in the United States.
Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive is a U.S.-based video game holding company that publishes the Grand Theft Auto and Borderlands franchises.
The details
Zelnick answered investor questions on the call after presenting results. He said the video games business has been largely immune to piracy, but the company is now scaling its technical defenses and legal activities against bad-faith actors using AI. He reiterated his March rejection of the idea that AI can tackle games on the scale of GTA 6.
Timeline
March: Zelnick rejected the idea that AI can tackle games on the scale of GTA 6.
November 9, 2026: Take-Two held its Q2 2027 earnings call and took investor questions on AI and piracy.
The Tech Race
Publishers have raised piracy alarms over AI-assisted decompilation of game code in recent weeks, a concern that now sits alongside the broader contest over generative AI's role in creative production. Take-Two's stance draws a line between AI as a tool for human creators and AI as a means of illicit copying.
For players, Take-Two's anti-piracy push could affect how and where games are distributed and protected. Consumers buying titles should watch for changes to licensing, access, and digital rights management as publishers respond to AI-enabled copying.
The takeaway
AI is being used both to make games and to copy them, and publishers are responding on both fronts. Readers following the industry should watch how creative and protection strategies evolve as the tools mature.
Further reading
Explore more coverage in Artificial Intelligence for context on how AI is reshaping creative industries.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Eurogamer.
