Netflix Co-Founder Reed Hastings Says Entertainment Will Be ‘Least Affected’ As AI Fears Rise — ‘We Like Human Conflict’

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Artificial intelligence may be coming for many industries, but Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) co-founder and Executive Chair Reed Hastings sees entertainment differently.

The industry could be more resistant to disruption because audiences are drawn to human emotion and conflict, according to him.

“Least affected, I think, will be entertainment,” Hastings said recently on the “Possible” podcast.

The discussion covered AI’s effect on entertainment, production costs and what audiences may still value as the technology improves.

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Hollywood’s AI Debate Still Comes Back To Human Drama

Hastings pointed to sports while explaining why entertainment may resist AI disruption longer than other industries.

“You’re not going to watch a basketball game of robots, right?” he told hosts Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger. “March Madness works because we like human conflict.” Hastings said AI is stronger in areas such as “thinking and logic like coding.”

The debate is already extending across Hollywood. Filmmakers are discussing the technology’s practical uses behind the camera.

A Grant Thornton survey published in April found that 54% of executives said writers, editors and production staff need the most AI adoption support. Meanwhile, at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, filmmakers have discussed AI’s growing role in production and post-production while raising concerns about consent, artistic integrity and creative work.

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AI May Cut Costs, But Audiences Still Decide

In Hastings’ view, AI may lower costs around the technical side of filmmaking, including visual effects work on large stadium crowd scenes.

However, cheaper tools do not guarantee a project will connect with audiences. He cited Netflix’s animated film “K-Pop Demon Hunters” as an example of how hard hits remain to predict, saying success can still feel like “the same lightning strike.”

Still, Hastings said that audiences may continue paying for human performers even as AI-generated content improves.

“We don’t want to watch robots,” he said. “I think people will pay for real actors.”

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This article Netflix Co-Founder Reed Hastings Says Entertainment Will Be ‘Least Affected’ As AI Fears Rise — ‘We Like Human Conflict’ originally appeared on Benzinga.com

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