AI-generated thumbnails are taking on Fortnite’s user-generated Discovery feed, and Epic Games says it won’t be policing them anytime soon.
Fortnite’s important menu is usually the primary impression hundreds of thousands of players have. Increasingly, that screen is flooded with AI-created art, sometimes generic, sometimes questionable. Despite community backlash, Epic is staying hands-off.
“We don’t really care what tool you employ to make your thumbnails,” said Dan Walsh, product management director at Epic. “All we care about is whether or not it’s compliant with our rules.”
Quick facts
Epic admits AI detection is becoming “increasingly difficult to the purpose where it’s probably going to develop into unenforceable.”
No crackdown planned, whilst some AI thumbnails reuse copyrighted content or appear low-quality.
Epic doesn’t use AI to generate its own skins or assets, and says it won’t.
Human-first philosophy
Executive VP Saxs Persson reaffirmed that Epic still believes humans create the perfect results. “Do we feel like we want to start out making Fortnite outfits using AI models? No,” he said.
AI art is evolving fast, and so are debates around quality, originality, and ownership. Epic’s alternative to let AI thumbnails flood Discovery could shape how generative content gets moderated across the broader creator economy.
Fortnite’s front page might look messier, but Epic’s focus is rule compliance, not the tools.
That means AI art (prefer it or not) is here to remain.
