Is GTA 6 made with AI? Take-Two's CEO says it's handcrafted, and AI's clearest saving so far is a cheap mobile ad

"Grand Theft Auto is handcrafted," Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick told a Wall Street Journal audience on Nov. 4, 15 days before Grand Theft Auto VI comes out. He also said Take-Two is trying everything it can to make better games more efficiently, and that AI has saved it relatively little on making games so far.

The remarks, at WSJ Tech: California, don't change what Rockstar Games and Take-Two have said about GTA 6, though some sites read them as a hint that AI tools sit somewhere in its development. Here's what he said, and what he didn't. The full video is on YouTube, and the details below come from reports on it.

What he said about GTA 6

The AI answer came in the same talk as the viral exchange over hits. As Insider Gaming reported it:

• The word itself. AI is a muddled term in video games, he said, and players are taking the position that they want nothing called AI.
• Handcrafted. Grand Theft Auto is handcrafted, he said, though video games are made on computers with technology.
• A long history. Take-Two has worked with AI and machine learning since the beginning, by his account.
• The aim. Take-Two is trying everything it can to make better games more efficiently, and he has some confidence AI can help.

He named no AI tool used on GTA 6. TweakTown and Insider Gaming took the answer as a sign that some tools are in its development, which is their reading. EnosTech wrote that it doesn't contradict what he said in February.

What Rockstar and Take-Two have said before

• February: Zelnick told GamesIndustry.biz that generative AI has no part in what Rockstar is building and that its worlds are built by hand, GamesRadar reported, even as he spoke warmly about AI in game development more broadly.
• August: Rob Nelson, co-studio head of Rockstar North, told Kinda Funny's Greg Miller that there's no generative AI in the game, Notebookcheck reported.

Those answers are about generative AI, the tools that produce art, voices or text. Notebookcheck notes they don't cover the ordinary game systems behind traffic, pedestrians and police, which players have always called AI.

Where AI has saved Take-Two money

Zelnick said Take-Two has hundreds of projects trying new technology, but that the actual savings have been relatively small against its costs, according to quotes published by Scuttlebutt.

His clearest example comes from outside Rockstar. Take-Two's studio in Turkey had been paying $25,000 to $50,000 per spot for mobile ads shot with live actors, Scuttlebutt reported, and it showed him 30- and 60-second spots made entirely with AI for about $800 each.

The subject carries risks of its own. Take-Two's annual report lists AI among its risks, including to its reputation, and the union vote at Rockstar covers generative AI policies.

What GTA 6 cost

Asked what GTA 6 cost to make, Zelnick gave no figure, Sportskeeda reported, saying it was expensive and took a long time. He also wouldn't predict how quickly the game will pay back its cost, according to Scuttlebutt.

Take-Two has never disclosed the budget. Rockstar's head of publishing, Jennifer Kolbe, told Bloomberg that a rumor putting it above the $1.5 billion cost of Dubai's Burj Khalifa was wrong, and our guide to how long GTA 6 took to make has what's known.

Zelnick also described how GTA 6's second delay reached him. The game comes out Nov. 19 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.