Google Cloud Boss: 90% of Studios Use AI, But Not Everyone Talks About It
Nearly every large studio, according to Jack Buser, head of Google Cloud’s gaming division, already leans on AI in day-to-day development — yet many choose to keep that fact out of the marketing copy. He told this to Mobilegamer.biz.
Buser says AI picks up repetitive chores — idea prompts, filler assets, etc. — and tools such as Gemini and Nano Banana Pro shave hours off mundane work so teams can aim at higher-priority pieces. Still, a fair number of developers avoid talking about it openly because parts of the audience react negatively.
You might not notice it while playing, but some of the titles people love were already made with help from AI. At Gamescom last summer we asked studios across the globe: about nine out of ten said, “yes, we use AI.” Other polls show lower numbers — nearer 40–50%. That’s still significant, of course, but the gap comes down to whether studios are willing to say, plainly, that they’re using AI.
Jack Buser
He singled out Capcom as an example. Buser says the company applies AI to speed up pipelines and free artists for bigger decisions.
They [Capcom] use Nano Banana and Gemini to crank out tons of ideas quickly, then use Gemini to sort and group them… from thousands of possibilities, the ones most likely to catch the art director’s eye are picked. The art director then takes those leads and steers artists in refining them. In a sense the AI has already screened — i.e., handed over the better stones on the road — so the team’s creative energy goes toward major characters, bosses, key scenes and the like.
Jack Buser
Notably, Capcom has previously said it won’t insert assets created purely by generative AI into released games, though it does trial those systems in various teams to improve workflows.
Players remain wary for now, Buser admits, but he believes perceptions will shift as the technology’s effects become visible.
People will start to see that AI can help get the games they want out faster. The industry can take more chances — you don’t have to spend seven years on one huge project when you could spin up several smaller ones. Maybe only a couple will hit big, but the others might be odd, unexpected, or interesting — things that likely wouldn’t have been greenlit before. When that fuller picture arrives — and it’s already happening — attitudes will begin to change.
Jack Buser
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