The muddy waters of trying to be an ethical gamer have got significantly more grimy with the announcement that PUBG and The Callisto Protocol publisher Krafton is investing $1 billion in Hanwha Aerospace.
The deal will focus on “Physical AI”, and a post on the company website states, “The partnership combines KRAFTON’s advanced AI research and software development capabilities with Hanwha Group’s industrial infrastructure in defence and manufacturing.”
The statement also reveals “KRAFTON’s accumulated experience in operating large-scale game data and physics-based virtual worlds serves as core assets in training and verifying physical AI software. Built on this foundation, KRAFTON plans to power the real-world operation of physical AI, while validating feasibility across phased steps.”
“AI technology is rapidly growing beyond industries, with new physical AI applications in the defence sector,” said Jae-il Son, Hanwha Aerospace President and CEO. “Our partnership with KRAFTON will offer a new paradigm standard in areas of physical AI and future defence.”
Hanwha have a contract to service US Navy warships and also makes precision-guided munitions and multiple rocket launchers.
Yesterday, Krafton lost a lawsuit against three Unknown Worlds executives, the team that created Subnautica. The lawsuit suggested that Krafton had deliberately removed the trio from Unknown Worlds to stop receiving a $250 million pay-out.
The decision reveals that Krafton CEO Changhan Kim thought that if the pay-out went ahead, he would be thought of as “a pushover”. Kim then used ChatGP to formulate a plan to remove the three executives so it is somewhat ironic that Krafton are pushing AI when their own use of it has failed miserably.
Source: Krafton / GameDeveloper
It’s interesting to see such a major investment in a defense company, especially from a gaming perspective. This definitely raises important discussions about ethics in the gaming industry. Looking forward to seeing how this unfolds!
You’re right, it does raise some intriguing questions about the intersection of gaming and defense. This investment could potentially lead to new technologies that might influence game development, blending military tech with immersive gaming experiences. It’ll be interesting to see how the gaming community reacts to this shift.