PlayStation creator predicts AI-generated entertainment by 2029 as he questions gaming's technological progress

Ken Kutaragi, widely regarded as the father of PlayStation, believes artificial intelligence could fundamentally change the future of gaming and entertainment by the end of the decade. He also argues that the games industry has fallen behind other sectors in technological innovation.

Speaking in an interview with Japanese gaming publication 4Gamer, published on 9 October 2026, Kutaragi discussed how AI could eventually allow people to generate entertainment through their own ideas and interactions rather than relying entirely on traditionally developed games.

Kutaragi suggested that the games industry was once a driving force behind technological progress. During the early PlayStation generations, developers adopted new technologies to improve real-time performance and responsiveness. However, he believes the convergence of PC and console gaming has not produced the same level of innovation.

He pointed to the growing complexity and cost of game development, contrasting modern productions with the original Battle Arena Toshinden for PlayStation. According to Kutaragi, that game was developed by fewer than 10 people in approximately three months.

Despite the considerable resources invested in contemporary games, he argued that improvements in areas such as shading and non-player character dialogue have been relatively modest compared with advances in AI.

The former Sony executive also highlighted ongoing research into the real-time generation of video and music using artificial intelligence. He said such technology is expected to reach speeds comparable to those of current gaming systems around 2028 to 2029.

If that prediction proves accurate, Kutaragi believes the implications could extend well beyond conventional video games. He envisages a future in which conversations, imagination and personal interactions themselves become forms of entertainment content.

He even speculated that the broader entertainment market could eventually grow to around ¥3,000 trillion, compared with the current gaming market's value of more than ¥30 trillion. This was presented as a hypothetical possibility rather than an established market forecast.

Kutaragi's comments suggest a future in which the boundaries between games, interactive media and AI-generated experiences become increasingly difficult to distinguish. However, the 2028–2029 timeframe remains a prediction, not a confirmed release schedule or announcement of a new PlayStation technology.