Patrick Söderlund, the CEO of Embark Studios, the developers of Arc Raiders, is once again making the case that AI will reshape how games are made, but not in the lazy, buzzword-heavy way the industry usually talks about it. In a newly released Nexon capital markets briefing, the Embark Studios CEO and newly appointed Nexon executive chairman argued that most companies are chasing the wrong AI strategy. His view is that throwing money at tools alone will not fix broken production pipelines.
That is the real hook here. Söderlund is not pitching AI as a magic button that makes games overnight. He is pitching it as part of a broader overhaul of development itself. Under a slide titled “Redesigning Game Development,” he said every company has an AI plan, but most of them will get it wrong because they have misunderstood the challenge. According to Söderlund, the winners in this race will not be the first movers, but the teams that actually understand how to rebuild workflows around the technology.
Patrick Söderlund says AI needs to change workflows, not just add tools
Söderlund’s comments came as part of Nexon’s wider 2026 transformation plan, which focuses on cost discipline, stronger IP management, and a rethink of how games are built across the company. Nexon said the briefing centered on redesigning development processes, improving efficiency, and using Embark’s methods more broadly across the group.
That context matters because Söderlund is clearly trying to draw a line between meaningful production change and the usual corporate AI posturing. His argument is basically that studios are obsessing over the software while ignoring the structure around it. If the pipeline is slow, messy, and overloaded with old habits, better tools alone will not save it. That is a much more grounded argument than the usual “AI will change everything” line we keep hearing from executives.
Embark’s success is being used as proof of concept
Söderlund also pointed to Embark’s output as evidence that this approach works. In the briefing, he said the studio’s results were not “an accident,” adding that Embark built two games with significantly fewer people and at a fraction of the cost normally associated with AAA development. Nexon’s own announcement also highlighted ARC Raiders as proof that the company can build something with global appeal.
That is obviously the part publishers love hearing most. Fewer developers, lower costs, faster output, and still the ability to compete at the high end of the market. From a business standpoint, it sounds like the dream pitch. From a creative standpoint, though, it is where the conversation gets more complicated.
The AI debate around ARC Raiders is not going away
Söderlund’s AI push is landing in a gaming industry that is already deeply skeptical of how publishers want to use the technology. That skepticism has followed Embark for a while. Just weeks ago, Söderlund acknowledged that some AI-generated voice lines in ARC Raiders had been replaced with performances from professional actors, saying plainly that a real actor delivered better results. At the same time, he maintained that AI still has value as a production tool for speed and experimentation.
That contradiction is exactly why this story will get attention. On one hand, Söderlund is arguing that AI can help studios move faster and build smarter. On the other hand, even his own studio has had to walk back some of the more visible uses of it when the final quality did not hold up. So while the business logic is clear, the creative case is still far from settled.
The bigger question is whether players will buy into that vision. Gamers do not care how efficient a production pipeline is if the final product feels cheaper, flatter, or more automated. AI can absolutely help behind the scenes, but the moment it starts damaging performance, art direction, writing, or voice work, players notice immediately. That is why Söderlund’s comments are interesting. He is not just selling AI. He is selling a new philosophy for making games. And if Embark keeps delivering hits, more studios are going to try copying it.
Patrick Söderlund’s message is simple, even if the debate around it is not. He believes the future of game development will belong to studios that rethink the entire process, not just buy a few shiny AI tools and hope for the best. Embark’s smaller-team, lower-cost model is now being held up as the example. Whether that becomes the industry’s future or just another executive talking point will depend on one thing: whether the games still feel human when they finally land.
