Report: EA is using genAI for commentator voiceover in NHL 27

EA Sports is using generative AI to create voiceover for in-game commentary in NHL 27, according to veteran commentator John Buccigross, who told the Chirpin Zebras podcast that EA played him AI-generated audio of his voice. Buccigross noted the AI sometimes errs, such as saying 'chairs' instead of 'seats,' but he is open to the technology if it means less work for the same pay. EA has not yet responded to Game Developer's request for clarification.

Veteran spots commentator John Buccigross claims that EA Sports is using generative AI genAI to create voiceover for in-game commentary in professional hockey simulator NHL 27. As reported by IGN https://www.ign.com/articles/nhl-27-is-using-ai-generated-voiceover-for-in-game-commentators-john-buccigross-says and first spotted https://x.com/MikeStrawMedia/status/2097052725225607513 by Insider Gaming executive editor Mike Straw , Buccigross told the Chirpin Zebras podcast https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKTngM-27QM about his participation in the game. This also led to him mentioning that EA is using genAI, as per an alleged demonstration. "They're using some AI now; they played me some stuff back of my voice," Buccigross says on the podcast. "It's like 'wow, that's pretty good ' If that means less work but the same check, I'll take it." The commentator adds that sometimes "AI will get something wrong," referencing an example during the alleged presentation. At one point while playing back his AI voice, it said "Score And the crowd gets out of the chairs ", to which Buccigross said that they're called seats instead. "So, little things like that, you gotta go back and listen because words matter. ... But then you can make AI smarter; in the future they'll say seats, they won't say chairs. You have to manually put that in. That was kind of a funny anecdote from the process," he says. GenAI has garnered a largely negative reception from developers https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/one-third-of-game-workers-use-generative-ai-but-half-think-it-s-bad-for-the-industry in recent years, with many arguing that it is having a corrosive effect on the industry. EA boss Andrew Wilson, on the other hand, has been adamant about his positive outlook on the tech. Back in 2024, he said that 60 percent of development processes https://www.gamedeveloper.com/production/ea-ceo-60-percent-of-dev-processes-could-be-impacted-by-generative-ai- could be "impacted by generative AI," adding that the tech is one the publisher was "embracing deeply." Later that year, he reinforced the sentiment to investors, claiming genAI is at the " very core https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/ea-desperately-wants-investors-to-know-it-s-on-the-generative-ai-bandwagon " of EA's business and that it's far from a "buzzword." In late 2025, EA partnered with Stability AI https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/ea-signs-new-generative-ai-partnership-and-claims-the-tech-will-become-a-trusted-ally- to co-develop AI models, tools, and workflows, claiming that this would empower its development teams to "reimagine how content is built." Buccigross might seemingly be okay with his voice being allegedly replicated by artificial intelligence, but it's unsure whether EA is using the tech in other aspects of the game as well. Game Developer has contacted EA for clarification on the matter.