TLDR: Sony’s latest corporate report for 2025 details ambitious plans to significantly enhance the integration of Artificial Intelligence across its gaming and anime divisions. The company aims to leverage AI to streamline production processes, reduce costs, and foster creativity, citing examples like AI-driven localization in video games and automated animation tools in anime. This strategic shift is also accompanied by efforts to establish ethical AI usage guidelines and address concerns regarding job displacement.
Sony Group Corporation’s 2025 Corporate Report, released in September 2025, reveals a comprehensive strategy for integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into its core entertainment businesses, particularly within the rapidly evolving sectors of video games and anime. This move is positioned as a critical step to accelerate development, enhance efficiency, and foster creativity amidst rising production costs and market pressures.
According to the report, Sony is actively deploying AI to automate routine tasks in video game production that were previously handled manually. A notable example cited is ‘Marvel’s Spider-Man 2,’ released in 2023, which utilized speech recognition and machine learning systems for automatic subtitle generation in multiple languages, coupled with synchronized mouth movements. This significantly reduced localization time, a crucial factor in global releases. The company is also enhancing the user experience on its PlayStation®5 Pro (PS5®Pro) console with PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR), an AI-driven upscaling technology designed to deliver super sharp image clarity. Tsuyoshi Kodera, Chief Digital Officer (CDO) at Sony, emphasized the role of AI and data in supporting fans, creators, and business segments, stating that Sony plans to ‘further enhance the visualization and utilization of data and employee know-how within the Group.’
In the anime sector, Sony is developing specialized AI solutions to streamline production workflows. The ‘AnimeCanvas’ platform is highlighted as a tool designed to automate frame coloring and finishing, allowing animators to dedicate more time to creative aspects. Another innovation, ‘Mocopi,’ a mobile motion capture system, is being used to speed up animation and improve accuracy, as demonstrated in the successful anime ‘Solo Leveling.’ The report also mentions an automatic lip-sync engine that recognizes phoneme and timing information from voice data, which has been trialed in TV anime broadcasts since 2021 and is now being used in theatrical releases like ‘Utano ☆ Princesama TABOO NIGHT XXXX’ (2025) to reduce animator workloads.
Beyond specific applications, Sony’s broader AI strategy, as detailed by CDO Tsuyoshi Kodera, focuses on building an ‘Engagement Platform’ that leverages AI and data to understand fan interests, expand communities, and provide tailored services. The company views AI as a ‘catalyst for positive transformation and a partner in creativity,’ emphasizing that AI should support, not replace, human ingenuity.
Internally, Sony has introduced ‘Enterprise LLM,’ a generative AI platform, to boost employee productivity, reform work processes, and inspire creativity. Since August 2023, this platform has been rolled out to over 50,000 active users across approximately 210 organizations globally, with over 300 pilot projects conducted and more than 50 fully implemented in daily workflows.
Recognizing the inherent risks, Sony is working closely with its Legal/Privacy, AI Governance, and Security departments to develop usage guidelines, establish guardrails, and promote risk awareness to ensure the safe, secure, and ethical utilization of AI. This includes developing AI technology to detect unauthorized use of music and other copyright infringements, thereby protecting creators’ intellectual property.
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However, the increased integration of AI also raises concerns about potential job displacement within the industry. Game developer Masahiro Sakurai, known for ‘Kirby’ and ‘Super Smash Bros.,’ has publicly stated that the current methods of developing large games are unsustainable and that studios must adapt to AI to remain competitive. While Sony’s report emphasizes AI as a supportive tool for creativity, the broader industry is grappling with the implications of automation on employment.
