Epic says AI should speed up work, not shrink the team

Epic Games is making its AI pitch the practical way: use it to cut down on busywork, not to cut people out. Stephanie Arnette, a senior external development manager on Fortnite, said during a recent Gamescom Latam panel that the company has been testing automated tools to help its games run more efficiently.

“Epic has been exploring different AI tooling that we can use to help support our games,” Arnette said in comments shared by GamesRadar+. “I know everyone’s biggest fear is, ‘Oh my god, AI is going to take all our jobs.’ That’s not our goal. The goal is to make us more efficient.”

Arnette said tasks that might take one person 10 hours could take less time with AI-assisted workflows, and she said Epic is also looking at how the tools could fit into art work without saying exactly how that would happen. She also said any AI used in Fortnite would come from Epic’s own direction, not from an outside partner trying to plug in its systems.

The remarks land at a time when the industry keeps circling the same argument. Companies want AI for speed, while workers keep wondering who pays the price. Epic’s message, at least in this panel, was simple. The tools are there to shave time off the process, not to erase the people doing the work.

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