Could an AI bot do a better job as a games company CEO than an actual human?

That headline’s not an idle question: Chinese gaming company NetDragon decided to give it a try. Last August, NetDragon, which runs multiple MMOs including Eudemons and Conquer Online, appointed “Ms. Tang Yu” as Rotating CEO of subsidiary Fujian NetDragon Websoft in an effort to “pioneer the use of AI to transform corporate management and leapfrog operational efficiency to a new level.”

Multiple industry websites have post hoc pieces this week attempting to draw a line between the bot’s appointment and the company’s success, as the company’s stock has climbed over the last few months. The Hustle’s graphic, for example, shows a positive percent change in stock value for NetDragon over the last few months when compared to companies run by human CEOs (yes, I just typed those words) on Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index.

Of course, the graphs also demonstrate that the stock market is volatile and the tech market – especially MMO games companies – aren’t exactly pegged to general indices, so we might have preferred to see a comparison to analogous corporations. It could also be read less as an achievement of AI and more as an indictment of CEO worship and excessive pay (what are you paying them for again?). Further, stock value doesn’t always reflect the quality of the company and its products and the treatment of its workers, and of course, just announcing that you’re doing a stunt like this helps propel the tech sector investment that makes these bubbly trends happen to begin with.

In any case, I’m sure we can all think of some gaming companies that’d be demonstrably better off with an AI – or a phone book or a ham sandwich – as CEO.

Advertisement