D&D General Hasbro CEO Says AI Integration Has Been "A Clear Success"

We've known for some time that Hasbro CEO--and former president of Wizards of the Coast--Chris Cocks is an avid AI supporter and enthusiast. He previously noted that of the 30-40 people he games with regularly, "there's not a single person who doesn't use AI somehow for either campaign development or character development or story ideas." In a 2025 interview he described himself as an "AI bull".

In Hasbro's latest earnings call, Cocks briefly addressed the use of AI within the company. While he mentions Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast and the digital studio teams, he doesn't specifically namecheck Dungeons & Dragons. However, he does tout Hasbro's AI integration as a "clear success", referring primarily to non-creative operations such as finances, supply chains, and general productivity enhancements, and emphasises that "people make the decisions and people own the creative outcomes". He also notes that individual teams choose whether or not to use AI.

So while it is clear that AI is deeply embedded in Hasbro's workflows, it is not clear to what extent that applies to Dungeons & Dragons. WotC has indicated multiple times that it will not use AI artwork, and its freelance contracts explicitly prohibit its use. The company also removed AI-generated artwork in 2023's Bigby's Presents: Glory of the Giants.

Before I close, I want to address AI, and how we're using it at Hasbro. We're taking a human-centric creator-led approach. AI is a tool that helps our teams move faster and focus on higher-value work, but people make the decisions and people own the creative outcomes. Teams also have choice in how they use it, including not to use it at all when it doesn't fit the work or the brand. We're beyond experimentation. We're deploying AI across financial planning, forecasting, order management, supply chain operations, training and everyday productivity. Under enterprise controls and clear guidelines around responsible use and IP protection. Anyone who knows me knows I'm an enthusiastic AI user and that mindset extends across the enterprise. We're partnering with best-in-class platforms, including Google Gemini, OpenAI and 11 labs to embed AI into workflows where it adds real value. The impact is tangible. Over the next year, we anticipate these workflows will free up more than 1 million hours of lower-value work, and we're reinvesting that capacity into innovation, creativity and serving fans. Our portfolio of IP and the creators and talent behind it are the foundation of this strategy. Great IP plus great storytelling is durable as technology evolves, and it positions us to benefit from disruption rather than being displaced by it.

In toys, AI-assisted design, paired with 3D printing has fundamentally improved our process. We've reduced time from concept to physical prototype by roughly 80%, enabling faster iteration and more experimentation with human judgment and human craft determining what ultimately gets selected and turned into a final product. We believe the winners in AI will be companies that combine deep IP, creative talent and disciplined deployment. That's exactly where Hasbro sits. As we enter 2026, we view playing to Win and more importantly, the execution behind it by our Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast and digital studio teams as a clear success.

- Chris Cocks, Hasbro CEO​

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Wizards of the Coast's most recent statement on AI said "For 50 years, D&D has been built on the innovation, ingenuity, and hard work of talented people who sculpt a beautiful, creative game. That isn't changing. Our internal guidelines remain the same with regards to artificial intelligence tools: We require artists, writers, and creatives contributing to the D&D TTRPG to refrain from using AI generative tools to create final D&D products. We work with some of the most talented artists and creatives in the world, and we believe those people are what makes D&D great."

A small survey of about 500 users right here on EN World in April 2025 indicated that just over 60% of users would not buy D&D products made with AI.

 

[Scribe]

My kids are amazed that I used to have dozens of phone numbers memorized. Now I know two, my cell and my work phone. Everything else I've off-loaded and don't miss it.

I know my current cell, my home line, and my home line when I was 16.

 

[Clint_L]

I think that is a good point. Though, I would also say that not all tasks/skills are of equal baseline value. I believe that certain skills, such as critical thinking and logic are foundational to other skills.

As another user said, the current issue with AI is that a lot of people are just stopping at being spoonfed an answer. In a world that is becoming more digital world and bombarding human beings with information, being able to think and process information and understand (rather than just hear and memorize) is a skill that I believe should be valued more rather than less.

So the question is are minds being freed to be able to put cognitive energy into other things or are minds being put on a sort of cruise control?

People go to the gym to strengthen our arms and legs... strengthen bodies. Is overreliance on AI the cognitive equivalent of choosing to just sit on the couch?

This is an interesting point. One reason that people go to the gym is because we have increasingly sedentary occupations, which have health and wellness costs (mind you, so do labouring jobs, but in different ways). So we have learned that we need to force ourselves into doing exercise. It may well be the case that AI will similarly require us to force ourselves to exercise our minds.

But this may be a good problem to have. Most of us probably don't wish we had to labour in the field all day so we wouldn't have to worry about going to the gym or else get flabby. A few generations hence, people might be similarly happy that they don't have to labour at basic cognitive jobs, even if it means they need to remember to keep exercising their minds lest they get flabby.

 

[Charlaquin]

This is an interesting point. One reason that people go to the gym is because we have increasingly sedentary occupations, which have health and wellness costs (mind you, so do labouring jobs, but in different ways). So we have learned that we need to force ourselves into doing exercise. It may well be the case that AI will similarly require us to force ourselves to exercise our minds.

But this may be a good problem to have. Most of us probably don't wish we had to labour in the field all day so we wouldn't have to worry about going to the gym or else get flabby. A few generations hence, people might be similarly happy that they don't have to labour at basic cognitive jobs, even if it means they need to remember to keep exercising their minds lest they get flabby.

Mmm... I see what you're saying, but the consequences of people's bodies getting flabby are ultimately personal to those people. The consequences of enough people's minds getting "flabby" can easily become global. We already have a massive problem of anti-intellectualism leading to a widespread falling of trust in scientific expertise, alongside a rise of belief in conspiracy theories. Our minds are already pretty "mentally flabby," and it's already causing potentially cataclysmic geopolitical issues. I feel like a new technology that will make keeping "mentally fit" take more work is the very last thing the world needs right now. (Well... Maybe the second-to-last thing...)