Tim Willits, the chief creative officer at Saber Interactive, weighed in on the controversy sparked by CEO Matthew Karch’s response to allegations that a writer had been replaced by an artificial‑intelligence system. The dispute began when Stella Sacco, who identified herself as the lead writer on Saber’s upcoming title Rideshare Simulator, publicly claimed that the company had dismissed her and substituted her role with ChatGPT halfway through development. In August, Sacco posted a statement asserting that she had been removed from the project and that a language model had taken over her responsibilities. Karch’s rebuttal was unusually sharp.
He wrote, “Stella who? I had to ask Claude because I have never spoken to her or seen her … As far as Stella is concerned, she was replaced by someone more talented and terminated for a variety of reasons a few months later.” The comment was widely interpreted as sarcasm and drew additional criticism. Sacco quickly fired back, insisting, “Everything I said was true.
Here’s more truth: that statement is remarkably pathetic for the CEO of any company to be making.” When GamesIndustry.biz approached Willits at Gamescom for his perspective on the public back‑and‑forth, he responded succinctly: “That’s just Matt’s sarcasm, that’s all.” He then emphasized the core point that the studio has never actually swapped a human writer for an AI system. “We’ve never replaced anybody with AI. That’s crazy,” Willits said. He added that no generative‑AI tools were used in the creation of Saber’s flagship franchises such as *Space Marine*, *Hellraiser*, or *Stuntman*.
According to Willits, the company is nevertheless experimenting with AI in a limited, exploratory capacity. He explained that the only project currently featuring an AI component is the yet‑to‑be‑released Rideshare Simulator, which includes an “AI mode” that the team is testing.
He was quick to clarify that the primary narrative, characters, and dialogue for the game’s main campaign were crafted by a team of human writers. Even the side missions, he stressed, were authored by people rather than algorithms. The Steam store page for Rideshare Simulator provides a transparent disclosure about the role of artificial intelligence in the title. It notes that while the main campaign’s story, characters, and spoken lines were written by human staff, AI tools were employed for voice generation and certain aspects of localization.
Additionally, the optional “Free Ride” mode contains AI‑generated passenger missions and localized dialogue, and the in‑game radio stations blend tracks created by human musicians with pieces produced by AI. Willits also addressed broader concerns about the use of generative AI in Saber’s production pipeline. He confirmed that the studio does not currently rely on AI for core development tasks such as coding, level design, or texture creation. However, he expressed optimism that future breakthroughs could lead to a “clever and brilliant use case for true modern AI integration” that would be instantly recognizable and widely adopted across the industry.
He likened the current state of AI to other emerging technologies throughout history. “When they first come out, people are like, ‘What are we going to do with this technology? How’s it going to work?’ Then we all discover that it fits into everyday life,” he said.
Willits believes that as developers experiment and share their findings, the industry will gradually settle on practical, valuable applications for AI. Looking ahead, Willits hinted that the next Gamescom could showcase larger titles that deliberately incorporate AI features.
“I think we’ll have some bigger games that actually focus on it,” he predicted. He is eager to see how AI integration will affect player experience in Rideshare Simulator and beyond, describing the ongoing trials as “a great experiment.” In summary, while Saber Interactive is testing AI in specific, non‑core aspects of a single upcoming game, the company maintains that all major creative work—especially narrative and mission design—remains firmly in human hands.
The controversy appears to stem more from a heated exchange of words than from any substantive policy of replacing staff with machines. The full interview with Willits can be read on GamesIndustry.biz.