As Xbox Turns 25, CEO Asha Sharma Says ‘A Single Person Will Soon Be Able to Wield Capabilities That Once Required Entire Nations’

New coverage highlights the tension between Asha Sharma’s vision of smaller teams using advanced tools to make ambitious games and the job cuts already reshaping Xbox. As the company approaches its 25th anniversary, its chief executive says individuals and small teams may soon be able to create at a scale that once demanded nations or hundreds of developers.

Sharma’s anniversary essay does not mention AI by name, but describes a future that appears to rely heavily on it, a contentious prospect for players and developers. She said the rising cost, resources and risks of modern game development can stop ideas from becoming games. Xbox cut 1,600 jobs in July and planned a further 1,600 cuts; studios including Double Fine and Ninja Theory were affected, while id Software was reorganised. Xbox’s anniversary is on 15 November.