Cygames’ parent company announces policy on generative AI use 

Cygames’ parent company CyberAgent has published guidelines on using AI-generated images. The announcement was made public via the company’s X account in early April, although the guidelines were apparently released internally back in February. The use of generative AI images is a divisive topic, and CyberAgent has published an interview article to clarify their stance and internal usage guidelines. 

Established in 2011, Japanese developer and publisher CyGames is best known for the Granblue Fantasy series. In October 2023, we reported that CyberAgent planned to research and develop generative AI technology for use in animation and game development (Related Article). 

Regarding the recently announced generative AI image usage guidelines, CyberAgent’s Kazuyuki Oikawa explained the company’s reasoning in an interview on the CyberAgent website.  

Currently, only works created by humans are protected by copyright laws, and usage of images generated by AI programs trained on copyrighted material is currently an area of legal uncertainty, as detailed in a recent article by World Economic Forum. Like many governments, the Japanese authorities have yet to specify their stance in relation to generative AI usage, with existing laws open to various interpretations. “However, we thought it would have a significant negative impact on the company if we waited for everything to be put in place before considering how we could utilize image-generating AI,” Oikawa explains, adding that they are currently using AI under a scope deemed safe by the company. 

In the interview, Oikawa seems keen to emphasize that generative AI images won’t be perceived as a finished product. He gives generating images that are used as raw materials for creating something new as one potential use of AI. He explains that creatives at CyberAgent normally spend time searching for such images using stock services. However, using Adobe Firefly to generate specific images that can safely be used for commercial purposes would greatly reduce the amount of time this process takes. Oikawa adds, “We believe that we can more efficiently produce high-quality creative works by combining safe AI image generation tools with existing workflows and individuals’ creativity.” 

Kentaro Horii, the company’s legal advisor, goes on to explain that CyberAgent’s guidelines have “clearly-stated precautions on avoiding copyright infringement,” adding that when drawing up the guidelines, they examined real-world issues that have occurred due to misuse of AI. One example rule from the guidelines is that employees must not use prompts that contain the name of a specific character or artist. Generated images must also undergo a check to make sure they are not overtly similar to existing works. Oikawa explains that given CyberAgent’s wide range of media, advertisement and game-related services, each division has its own person in charge of monitoring responsible use of generative AI imagery, and that eventually, each division will have their own rules based on the guidelines. 

Overall, it seems that CyberAgent and Cygames are putting much thought and effort into making sure that they use generative AI images safely and effectively. Oikawa adds that these guidelines will be adjusted to keep up with the ever-changing environment surrounding generative AI usage. He reiterates that, “The goal is not to replace the work of creators with generative AI,” but rather that “by utilizing (it) appropriately, we want to enhance creators’ creativity more and improve our corporate value further.” 

Cygames is not the only Japanese developer exploring generative AI usage. Back in December 2023, Ni no Kuni developer Level 5 revealed their application of Stable Diffusion, demonstrating how they used it in the soccer RPG Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road (Related Article).