Side, a seasoned services provider formerly known as PTW, has entered into a six‑month memorandum of understanding with Denmark‑based artificial‑intelligence specialist Modl.ai. The agreement sets the stage for a joint effort to create an AI‑driven quality‑assurance (QA) platform that blends Side’s extensive testing expertise with Modl.ai’s cutting‑edge machine‑learning capabilities. Modl.ai, a relatively new player in the gaming sector, was founded in 2018 and secured $1.7 million in seed capital two years later. While Side brings decades of experience in delivering testing services to publishers and developers, Modl.ai contributes a fresh perspective on how AI can augment, rather than replace, traditional QA processes.
"The MOU essentially fuses the strongest assets of both companies into a single, differentiated solution," explains Martin McBride, Side’s chief commercial officer. "One of the most coveted, almost mythical, goals for the games industry today is to harness AI to enhance QA. No one has cracked that problem yet, but we believe we are on the brink of a breakthrough." Earlier AI‑based QA tools, including earlier versions from Modl.ai, required developers to hand over complete builds or even source code so that the AI could run its analyses. Those approaches relied on deep integration via plugins and SDKs, creating friction and scalability issues.
"It became cumbersome over time," admits Modl.ai founder Christoffer Holmgard. Holmgard says the new system eliminates the need for any internal access. "We treat the product exactly as you would hand it to a human tester—or eventually to the consumer. You load it onto a comparable device, and our solution runs the game, watches the screen, simulates key inputs, logs everything that happens, and then passes that data to a second AI that flags potential bugs and escalates them for human review." The first phase of the workflow is what Modl.ai calls "building game knowledge." Developers upload assets, design documents, screenshots, or any other relevant material and converse with the AI in plain language.
"All interactions are natural‑language based," Holmgard notes. "We can chat about mechanics, share images, feed design docs, and the AI gradually constructs an internal model of the game." Once the AI has a solid grasp of the title, developers specify the testing scope. This can range from conventional test cases to novel scenarios that play to the strengths of the AI.
"Human expertise is still crucial here," Holmgard adds. "You need to craft prompts and guide the AI so it performs the right actions." During a "run"—Modl.ai’s term for a testing session—the system records textual logs, video snippets (referred to as "evidence"), and comprehensive telemetry. These artifacts are handed off to a human QA specialist, who reviews the findings and decides the next steps in the production pipeline.
One persistent challenge for AI in gaming is distinguishing genuine bugs from intentional features. Holmgard explains that feedback loops from human testers help the AI learn these subtleties. "Some learning comes from the prompts, some from the pre‑built game knowledge, and a significant portion comes from ongoing human feedback on each bug report. Over time the model becomes attuned to the developer’s design intent." Side envisions a future where QA professionals evolve into AI engineers, shifting the value chain upward.
"Our people can move beyond repetitive testing to become AI specialists," says McBride. "That not only raises their compensation but also opens new career pathways and makes it possible to bring jobs back to regions where they have historically disappeared because of low‑cost labor pressures." According to McBride, AI will free testers from monotonous tasks, allowing them to focus on strategic analysis and creative problem‑solving. "Every new build triggers smoke tests and countless verification steps that can bog down a tester’s workflow. By automating those repetitive elements, we enable our staff to think more strategically and grow professionally," he asserts.
Benedikte Mikkelsen, Modl.ai’s chief product officer, echoes this sentiment: "Many current tests are tedious and require the same manual steps over and over. An AI can take over those repetitive flows, freeing humans to evaluate gameplay, explore edge cases, and conduct more inventive testing. That’s the core value proposition of AI in QA." Both executives stress that AI is not a replacement for human QA talent but a tool to elevate it. McBride notes that testing costs in certain low‑wage regions are so low that a complete AI takeover is economically unrealistic.
"Providing our people with AI‑enhanced toolsets extends their careers and keeps them engaged longer," he says. "It’s about moving up the value chain, not eliminating the human element." Side’s philosophy treats AI as a "sliding scale" where the degree of automation can be adjusted, but a human will always remain in the loop. "That’s our ethos," McBride affirms. "The AI reduces tedious work and human error, raising overall quality while preserving the indispensable insight that only experienced testers can provide." When asked about the types of games the solution currently supports, COO Oliver Deslandes is candid: the technology is best suited for simpler titles—puzzle games, card games, or other experiences with repeatable mechanics—not fast‑paced 3D open‑world adventures or fighting games.
"We’re focusing on projects where the gameplay loop is predictable enough for the AI to model effectively," he explains. "Clients who are willing to embark on this pilot journey will help us refine the system for more complex titles down the line." Deslandes concludes that the partnership is a journey. "If you’re willing to experiment with us now, you’ll see how the technology evolves and where it can take your QA processes," he says. In summary, the Side‑Modl.ai collaboration aims to combine seasoned human testing expertise with AI automation to create a hybrid QA workflow.
By keeping humans in the decision loop, the partnership seeks to improve efficiency, reduce repetitive labor, and open new career pathways for QA professionals, all while gradually expanding the range of games that can benefit from AI‑assisted testing.