Infinity Ward has responded to player speculation regarding the new Gunny loadout assistant in Modern Warfare 4, stating that the feature is not an AI chatbot. The clarification came after a leaker, known as TheGhostofHope, suggested the system was an AI designed to help players with weapon builds.
In a direct rebuttal, Infinity Ward stated, "Wrong (again.) Gunny is handcrafted by our developers, not AI. It recommends builds based on the attachments you’ve unlocked for each weapon. It helps make quick loadout changes between matches. Give it a shot in the Beta." The developer's use of "again" refers to previous instances where the leaker's information about Call of Duty titles was inaccurate and publicly corrected by Activision.
The Gunny feature is described as a widget within the loadout screen that offers pre-made weapon builds based on unlocked attachments. This system is intended to assist players who may not wish to create their own loadouts or search for external player-made setups. The developer emphasized that Gunny is essentially a personified auto-equip function for curated builds.
Despite the denial regarding Gunny being an AI chatbot, Infinity Ward has confirmed the use of generative AI in other aspects of Modern Warfare 4's development. This acknowledgment aligns with information previously seen on the game's Steam page, which includes a disclosure stating, "Our team uses generative AI tools to help develop some in-game assets."
This broader application of AI in development was further corroborated by Infinity Ward co-studio head Mark Grigsby. He explained during a group presentation that the studio employs "whatever tools we have to enhance and help our developers to complete [tasks] on time" and utilizes "whatever we can, whatever tools we can [in development]."
Players had previously suspected AI involvement in cosmetic generation for titles like Modern Warfare 3 and Black Ops 6. The official AI disclosure on Call of Duty's Steam page and reports of potential AI-generated art in Black Ops 7 have fueled these discussions. While the Gunny assistant itself is confirmed to be developer-made, the use of AI in generating other in-game assets suggests that such tools are integrated into the development pipeline for Modern Warfare 4 and potentially future Call of Duty titles.