Last week we reported about Magic’s use of generative AI. We reported then that generative AI is something that Wizards currently has no plans to use. In fact, Magic: The Gathering even has a generative AI policy clearly defined on their website. AI tools, on the other hand, have become and remain a part of how Wizards makes the business end more efficient. To that end, Wizards announced on Daily MTG that they are rolling out a pilot program using AI with SpellTable.
SpellTable is a Wizards of the Coast-owned platform that allows Magic players to play the tabletop version of the game remotely. The new pilot program is through GGWP, a company dedicated to automating moderation for online interactions. In their announcement, Wizards reaffirmed that artists will continue to be protected as this will not interfere with their generative AI usage policy. In fact, Wizards isn't implementing generative AI here at all. GGWP's service is simply an AI-powered tool that will be used for the purpose of chat moderation between players on SpellTable.
The method that GGWP will use in moderating voice chat will require AI to review voice recordings and flag anything it deems as harmful speech. If a chat is flagged as containing harmful speech, a human moderator will review the recording for accuracy before any action is taken. GGWP is not new to this, as they have a list of companies they work with on their homepage, including major gaming companies like Sony and Unity.
Wizards points out that this is a pilot program. The need for better moderation tools was born out of the growing number of players on SpellTable, combined with the fact that moderation is currently limited to reviews of user-submitted incident reports. There will be future updates about the efficiency of using GGWP including any changes to the program as Wizards sorts through the data it produces.
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