Take-Two laid off the head its AI division and an undisclosed number of staff

Take-Two, the owner of Grand Theft Auto developer Rockstar Games, has seemingly laid off the head of its AI division, Luke Dicken, and several staff members working under him. "​​It’s truly disappointing that I have to share with you that my time with T2 — and that of my team — has come to an end," Dicken shared in a LinkedIn post spotted by Game Developer.

When asked to confirm the layoffs in its AI division, Take-Two declined to comment.

Dicken writes that his team was "developing cutting edge technology to support game development" and his post specifically notes that he's trying to find roles for staff with experience in things like "procedural content for games" and "machine learning." It's unclear how many people other than Dicken have been impacted by these layoffs, but the timing does seem a bit unusual for Take-Two.

Like some other large game publishers, Take-Two has "actively embraced" generative AI tools to "drive efficiencies" and "reduce costs." Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has even framed AI as having a positive effect on employment, noting that generative AI "will not reduce employment, it will increase employment," because "technology always increases productivity, which in turn increases GDP, which in turn increases employment."

It's too early to characterize these layoffs as some sort of tide turning against AI — like other big game companies, Take-Two also just does a lot of layoffs — but it's interesting they're happening now, while the company is speeding towards the release of Grand Theft Auto VI. The sequel is expected to be a big hit, one that should give Take-Two plenty of financial wiggle-room to experiment with new technology.