Artificial intelligence has gained significant traction in the gaming industry, manifesting through customer-facing chatbots, marketing materials, and even game development. The potential impact of AI in this rapidly changing sector is broadly recognized.
Game developers, including companies like Playtech, have highlighted how AI can harness legacy gaming content and player data to create new games that resonate with veteran players.
One company, Cubeia, an iGaming platform provider based in Stockholm, is taking a bold step by aiming to replace all its new feature code with AI-generated code by August. This ambitious initiative was conceived by Cubeia's Chief Operating Officer, Stefan Grenstad, during a salary review when reviewing logs from their project management tool, Jira.
A pattern emerged showing that mid-level developers at Cubeia, who had previously lagged behind senior developers, were now leading the way. “Two or three developers were delivering almost 60% of the results,” Grenstad noted, attributing their success to the use of AI.
Grenstad believes that merely providing developers with access to AI tools is insufficient. “We need to have this as an [integrated] part of how we do things,” he stated. The prospect of tripling output through AI-written code motivated this decision. “If our mid-level developers can produce such results, we would almost triple our output, and it becomes a survival question,” he explained, pointing out the necessity to compete in a market where others can match this productivity.
The integration of AI is being applied to both front-end and back-end development. Chief Product Officer Fredrik Ernander mentioned that Cubeia primarily relies on the Claude language model but is also experimenting with other tools like UX Pilot AI and v0.dev to enhance prototyping and feedback processes. “It’s a much faster feedback loop,” Ernander explained. He elaborated that previously, a front-end developer would be needed to create a prototype. Now he can produce one himself, streamlining the process.
Grenstad emphasized that this initiative is not about reducing headcount but about enhancing agility. Prior to incorporating LLMs, the two-week sprint system had become more of an assembly line than a feedback-driven process. “Inevitably, when you finish after two weeks, you're unable to reassess the work before it goes to production,” he remarked.
With AI-assisted development, features that could have taken a week can now be modified and released within the same day. Speaking about this new paradigm, Grenstad said, “In one day, maybe we can have three or four iterations.” While he highlighted the competitive nature of this shift to the development team, he assured them that job security for developers remains intact. “I spent a lot of time on the why, and it’s about being competitive in the market,” he said, acknowledging the change’s mixed reception among senior staff.
Despite the reliance on AI, Grenstad stressed that human oversight is crucial, particularly in reviewing the code generated by AI to avoid errors. “We need to make sure that AI is not hallucinating or making assumptions that are incorrect,” he explained.
Ultimately, customer feedback will determine the success of Cubeia's transition. Ernander acknowledged that while the company will roll out updates quickly, he does not foresee immediate improvements in speed to market. The focus has shifted from coding to discussions about the scope and functionality of features and their integration with legacy systems. “It’s much more on that level now,” he noted.
One of the challenges remains ensuring that new AI-generated code can coexist with older, human-written code. However, Ernander is optimistic that once these issues are resolved, speed to market could increase significantly. “I see everything speeding up because we’re not spending as much time on actual code development,” he remarked.
Ernander believes Cubeia is among the pioneers in AI adoption in the industry, acknowledging that competitors are making similar strides. “But Cubeia is early and we’ve moved fast. So we are ahead,” he opined. He expects AI to revolutionize game development over the next five years, echoing sentiments from Playtech CEO Mor Weizer, who indicated that AI-generated content will become standard within the industry. “AI capabilities will streamline game development, making it quicker and cheaper,” Weizer noted.
While Ernander sees positive transformations in how games are constructed, he does not anticipate significant changes on the operator side, stating, “We deliver the things that tie everything together, and that’s the hard part.”
Looking ahead to 2031, Grenstad anticipates a shift in job titles from 'developer' to 'product engineer,' with coding languages becoming mere implementation details. He expressed concerns about the broader implications for the workforce, stating, “My biggest fear is that after these 100 days we’ll have only one or two people saying, ‘I want to develop,’ and we don’t have that anymore.” He clarified that while participation in this technological transition is not enforced, opting out is not a neutral stance for developers or the company.
