Gaijin Entertainment, a Russian studio that later relocated to Hungary, has officially acknowledged the use of generative artificial intelligence by its outsourced partners to create textures for game models. This happened after attentive players noticed watermarks of Google’s Gemini neural network on camouflage and vehicle decoration elements in the game War Thunder.
Gaijin Entertainment, a Russian studio that later relocated to Hungary, has officially acknowledged the use of generative artificial intelligence by its outsourced partners to create textures for game models. This happened after attentive players noticed watermarks of Google’s Gemini neural network on camouflage and vehicle decoration elements in the game War Thunder.
As the company reported, the use of GenAI to create vehicle textures in the game is officially prohibited by internal regulations and agreements with outsourcing partners. During an internal investigation, it was revealed that one of the development teams integrated the generated AI elements without consulting the customer, and Gaijin’s internal quality control system did not detect the violation in a timely manner.
The developers are currently reviewing all work performed by this contractor and deciding whether to continue working with them. The company also promised to improve quality control procedures to avoid similar incidents from happening again.
The scandal erupted around several specific game models:
M60 Tank: Gemini Neural Network logo found on auxiliary camouflage texture. Gaijin explained that outsourcers generated a temporary texture using AI for early testing, but due to a mistake it ended up in the release version of the game.
Challenger 2 OES tank (Senrai Maidens modification): The Gemini watermark appeared on the vinyl record cover, which is part of the anime design of the vehicle. At the same time, the company denies using AI to create the design of the Emily tank itself, claiming that the drawing was completely created by artists by hand, and the similarity of other elements on the flag to the Gemini logo is a coincidence.
Gaijin Entertainment apologized to players for the oversight and thanked the community for their attention, which helped identify gaps in the production process.
Separately, the developers commented on the situation with the textures of the Yak-130 aircraft. The elements on the wings, which some users also took for Gemini logos, were explained in Gaijin as real markings of Russian military aircraft. This part of the texture was allegedly drawn based on real photos from open sources, in particular from Wikipedia, so the company rejected the accusations regarding this aircraft.
