Valve (Steam) "Regulate" the Usage of AI for Game Developer

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Today’s Highlights:

• Valve (Steam) "Regulate" the Usage of AI for Game Developer 🎮

• Sourcetable Raises $3M to Reinvent Spreadsheets for the Modern Business 📒

Valve (Steam) "Regulate" the Usage of AI for Game Developer

Artificial intelligence has been playing quite a big role in various industries, one of them being the gaming industry. Many games, whether big ones like The Last of Us: Part I and Red Dead Redemption 2 or indie games like Vaudeville, are now incorporating AI to enhance gameplay.

When applied to games, AI is mainly used to power responsive and adaptive behavior within video games, whether to control non-player characters (NPCs) or to develop game landscapes, as seen in the D&D-like role-playing game (RPG) Tales of Mythos that won LA Techweek’s AI Virtual Worlds Hackathon Grand Prize.

It is without a doubt that AI technology has allowed the creation of exciting and new experiences in gaming, so it’s no wonder more and more developers are looking into incorporating AI into their craft. Though technically and creatively possible, there had been news that a Steam developer got his AI-generated game banned by game publisher Valve. So, the question to be asked is, is it legally possible for developers to pursue this AI gaming journey?

AI Development

The Steam developer whose content was banned from Valve’s platform believed that said content was rejected due to it featuring “fairly obviously AI-generated assets”. It is said that the developer was given a second chance to resubmit their game but was rejected again, with claims that he does not own the necessary rights.

For a while now, AI-generated content has been seen circling around not just the gaming industry but the entirety of the entertainment industry. For instance, AI song covers have been seen around YouTube, from Taylor Swift covering “Starboy” by The Weeknd to Drake covering Colbie Caillat’s “Bubbly.”

These artists don’t actually perform the songs and are generated using artificial intelligence tools, and this has made major record labels argue copyright infringement.

Infringement on a similar scale seems to be what Valve fears, and this fear appears to be the reason behind the policing of AI-generated content on Steam.

Valve’s Statement

After news of the alleged AI bans spread, Valve clarified that its policy on AI-generated content isn’t meant to discourage the use of AI on Steam, but it is instead a form of safeguard to prevent copyright infringement.

Aware that AI is a constantly evolving form of technology, Valve revealed that it is continuing to learn about AI and the ways it can be used for game development. Shipping as many titles as received will still be Valve’s priority, but Valve desires to ensure that every developer involving AI in creating assets, whether it be in the form of images, text, or music, has sufficient and the proper rights to create said assets.

In its official statement regarding this issue, Valve claims that it will always welcome and encourage innovation, which they realize now will greatly involve AI. Due to this, Valve is working through how to integrate AI into its already-existing review policies. It reiterated that developers can use AI technologies as long as they “work with appropriate commercial licenses” and do not infringe on existing copyrights.

Until Valve sorts its review process out, Valve is offering refunds on app-submission credits for developers.

Funding News

Sourcetable Raises $3M to Reinvent Spreadsheets for the Modern Business

Spreadsheets, the lifeblood of business operations, are due for an upgrade. This belief spurred Eoin McMillan to establish Sourcetable, aimed at constructing "the world's best spreadsheet." Recently, Sourcetable scored a $3 million seed funding round, adding to a previous $1.25 million pre-seed funding, to take on spreadsheet titans like Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets.

McMillan's vision isn't about merely tweaking existing spreadsheets but about creating a whole new data management ecosystem. From seamlessly integrating external data sources to enabling real-time collaboration and data syncing to over 100 business applications, Sourcetable aspires to provide a potent combination of conventional and advanced features. These range from data warehousing to a SQL GUI for handling large datasets, thereby making data handling a breeze for non-tech professionals and business owners.

The fresh capital infusion will expedite the development of these cutting-edge features and aid Sourcetable in extending its reach to a broader market. Although still in the private beta phase, Sourcetable is shaping the future of spreadsheets based on user feedback and targets professionals who work with substantial data volumes regularly. So, if you're looking for a transformative approach to data organization, keep an eye on Sourcetable.

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