Saber chief says he would replace former writer with AI
Developing story first seen 3 hours ago
The dispute between Saber Interactive and former writer Stella Sacco has intensified after chief executive Matthew Karch said he would have been happy to replace her with AI, accusing her of dishonesty. Sacco called the comments pathetic and argued that Saber's AI use and Karch’s response could harm the company’s reputation, escalating a row over generative AI, disclosure and employment in game development.
Sacco alleges she was removed as lead writer on Rideshare “Stimulator” so ChatGPT could complete its text and planned updates, while Saber denies replacing writers with AI. Saber says the game’s story was written by people and that its writing staff has tripled since 2023, but acknowledges AI is used in an experimental free-ride mode with an effectively unlimited number of passengers; Karch also says the Steam page will be updated once the feature set is finalised.
- Saber CEO’s AI replacement remark deepens dispute with former writer.
- Sacco says ChatGPT replaced her; Saber denies this.
- Saber acknowledges AI use in an experimental game mode.
New here? Start with this
Saber Interactive is a video game company known for making and publishing games across several genres. Stella Sacco is a former lead writer who worked on Rideshare “Stimulator”, a game that includes scripted text and ongoing content updates.
The disagreement centres on whether generative artificial intelligence was used in place of human writing work. Sacco says she was removed so ChatGPT could take over some of that work, while Saber says its story content is written by people and disputes that writers have been replaced.
Generative AI tools can produce text from prompts, but their growing use has raised questions across the games industry about jobs, authorship and how clearly companies should explain their use. The issue also involves what information players are given on game store pages about AI-generated material.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Critics of Saber argue that a chief executive publicly saying he would replace a former lead writer with AI reinforces legitimate fears that generative tools will be used to displace creative workers without candid disclosure. They contend that writers deserve clarity about how AI affects their roles and credit, while players deserve accurate information about AI-generated content before buying or supporting a game. From this perspective, the comments risk damaging trust even if the company retains human writers elsewhere.
The case against
Saber can reasonably argue that experimentation with AI, particularly for a mode designed to generate an effectively unlimited range of incidental passengers, is a practical creative and technical choice rather than evidence that it is replacing authored storytelling or its writing team. The company says its story was written by people and that it has expanded its writing staff, suggesting AI can supplement work in narrowly defined areas while human creators remain central. It may also argue that disclosure should be updated when the final feature set is settled, so public descriptions are accurate rather than premature.
More coverage
AI Business Companies Entertainment Film Space Technology
Read the full article at the source →
Originally published by Eurogamer as “‘I would frankly have been happy to replace her with AI’ – extraordinary public spat between Saber CEO and writer “replaced with ChatGPT” intensifies”.