Nintendo Patents Watch

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Knowledge-based discourse

Nintendo’s Gen-AI Stance

It may be best to understand Nintendo’s stance regarding generative AI straight from the source.

Furukawa in 2024: “we recognize that it may also raise issues with intellectual property rights. […] we will work to continue delivering value that […] cannot be created by technology alone.”

Furukawa quote: “Generative AI, which is becoming a big topic recently, can be used in creative ways, but we recognize that it may also raise issues with intellectual property rights. We have decades of know-how in creating the best gaming experiences for our players. While we are open to utilizing technological developments, we will work to continue delivering value that is unique to Nintendo and cannot be created by technology alone.” https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2024/qa2406e.pdf

Miyamoto in 2024: “There is a lot of talk about A.I., […] everyone starts to go in the same direction, but that is where Nintendo would rather go in a different direction.”

Miyamoto interviewed by NYT: “It might seem like we are just going the opposite direction for the sake of going in the opposite direction, but it really is trying to find what makes Nintendo special,” Miyamoto said. “There is a lot of talk about A.I., for example. When that happens, everyone starts to go in the same direction, but that is where Nintendo would rather go in a different direction.” https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/25/arts/design/shigeru-miyamoto-interview-nintendo-museum.html

Nintendo reaffirmed the position when New York Times asked them to comment on a pseudo-intellectual AI puff piece in 2025.

Nintendo’s response to NYT: A spokesman for Nintendo said the company did not have further comment beyond what one of its leaders, Shigeru Miyamoto, told The New York Times last year: “There is a lot of talk about A.I., for example. When that happens, everyone starts to go in the same direction, but that is where Nintendo would rather go in a different direction.” https://ninpatentswatch.wordpress.com/2025/09/09/deeply-unserious-report/

It’s also instructive to revisit Furukawa’s statement on metaverse in 2022: “there is no easy way to define specifically what kinds of surprises and enjoyment the metaverse can deliver to our consumers. […] we do not think that is the situation at the present time.”

Furukawa quote: But at this point in time, there is no easy way to define specifically what kinds of surprises and enjoyment the metaverse can deliver to our consumers. As a company that provides entertainment, our main emphasis is on ways to deliver fresh surprises and fun to our consumers. We might consider something if we can find a way to convey a “Nintendo approach” to the metaverse that many people can readily understand, but we do not think that is the situation at the present time. https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2022/220204e.pdf

Nintendo’s management philosophy and corporate policy are fairly consistent, unwavering even. They are only “baffling and nonsensical” when observers insist on using industry norms—which are nothing more than trends and precedents—as a measuring stick. (This is not a dig.)

Bluesky post by [redacted]: Nintendo's business decisions are weird because they are either completely baffling and nonsensical or they're the only company in the industry with the correct take and there's no in-between

The company also has the luxury of a supportive and patient shareholder base, allowing them to continue on their own path. E.g., despite the calls from financial analysts and foreign funds to increase dividend payouts, domestic retail investors largely sided with the management.

Excerpt from Bloomberg report: Yet at Nintendo's annual shareholder meeting in Kyoto in late June, most of the dozen or so retail investors interviewed by Bloomberg sided with management. "I would prefer a rise in the stock price to more dividends," said Isao Okada, an 84-year-old pensioner from neighboring Nara prefecture. https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2025-nintendo-switch2/

[Originally posted on 2025-10-04 Pacific Time]