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EA's new owners are making "a huge bet" on generative AI cost-cutting to help repay a $20 billion loan, claims report (www.rockpapershotgun.com)

submitted 1 day ago by bytesonbike@discuss.online to c/games@sh.itjust.works

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The buyers are committing $36 billion of their own equity (briefly and inexpertly, "equity" is the value of your assets after you deduct anything you owe), including the value of the PIF's existing investments in EA. They're making up the rest of the total thanks to a $20 billion loan from JPMorgan Chase Bank. How will they manage that massive debt? According to the Financial Times, who cite unnamed insiders, they're gambling on the deployment of generative AI tools as a gigantic cost-saving measure.

"The investors are betting that AI-based cost cuts will significantly boost EA's profits in the coming years, people involved in the transaction told the Financial Times," the paper wrote (paywall) in their own coverage of the story. The FT elsewhere commented that the acquisition "is a huge bet that artificial intelligence can significantly cut EA's operating costs, allowing the equity consortium to manage a large debt load on a company that historically carried limited net debt."

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[–] djsoren19@lemmy.blahaj.zone 8 points 17 hours ago (2 children)

I mean... you're talking about the company that makes billions of dollars a year on FIFA games, which are already only one step removed from AI slop. I don't seriously think EA's customer base will care; the quality of the games made by EA is already low enough that I don't believe the use of AI will move the needle. And honestly, will anyone care if it's AI updating the rosters and title to FIFA 26? I guess I feel bad for the working devs putting food on their table, but is that the job that want?

[–] Glytch@lemmy.world 1 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Don't they not make FIFA anymore because they didn't want to pay for the license?

[–] djsoren19@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

FIFA 2026 just came out four days ago, so I'm pretty sure they still make it.

[–] Glytch@lemmy.world 2 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

You mean EA Sports FC 26? Which has been stripped of FIFA branding?

[–] djsoren19@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 21 minutes ago

Oh I see, you were just being pedantic for no reason.

[–] LadyAutumn@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 16 hours ago

I really do genuinely believe that AI content is a substantial drop in quality even from minimal effort content. They'd better invest their time moving to a subscription model. And evidently, whatever theyre currently doing isnt working or they wouldnt be in this situation in the first place. So, id say, firing everyone and moving to AI based content is unlikely to save them and I would believe likely to make their situation much worse.