Over the weekend, a member of Japan’s House of Representatives posted a statement on social media stating that Nintendo was specifically avoiding the usage of generative AI to “protect its IP.” Satoshi Asano, who currently represents Ibaraki 5th district, specifically wrote (in a now deleted post) the following:
“Nintendo is avoiding the use of generative AI to protect its intellectual property and is also advancing lobbying efforts with the government.”
In response, Nintendo has issued a statement denying the claim that it is working with the Japanese government to combat generative AI. On the company’s official Twitter account, Nintendo wrote, “Contrary to recent discussions on the internet, Nintendo has not had any contact with the Japanese government about generative AI. Whether generative AI is involved or not, we will continue to take necessary actions against infringement of our intellectual property rights.” Asano later issued an apology and clarified his statement.
What makes this statement so interesting is that it comes just a day after OpenAI launched its Sora 2 video generation model. Making a splash on social media for how many corporate IPs it infringed on, many assumed Nintendo would be frothing at the bit to sue the company. Instead, it appears as if Nintendo isn’t bothering to go after generative AI as a concept. We do know that soon-to-be-former Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser told the press that developers are what make Nintendo games special, not AI, but that was the extent of Nintendo’s statements on the matter.
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
