Sony's New PlayStation Patent Aims to Fix AI-Generated Patch Problems

Gamers know that over time, consoles inevitably develop technical glitches that need troubleshooting. Sony is looking to tackle this issue with an AI-powered tech support agent.

Sony has filed a patent for an AI that monitors your system for any warning signs and then uses a large language model (LLM) to generate a patch. This patch could either proactively fix the problem or send a report to Sony's engineers. However, unless you can disable this feature, all data processed on your PlayStation could potentially be visible to the AI agent, as it would likely need full system access to effectively monitor for all hardware and software issues.

There's also a risk that the system could turn minor issues into major ones. As Patentlyze, which discovered the patent, notes, "an automated system sending repair instructions to a device in your living room needs careful guardrails so a small hiccup does not become a larger one." After all, the PlayStation 5, and likely the PlayStation 6, are essentially specialized computers, and many of us have broken something by trying to fix a small problem that we could have ignored (or wasn't a real problem to begin with).

Furthermore, unless the LLM has particularly robust training and guardrails, it could make a mistake when coding these on-demand patches, potentially bricking users' PlayStations.

It's uncertain when or if this patent will become an actual AI tech support agent for your PlayStation. However, with the rumored death of discs for the PlayStation 6, it's likely that Sony's next-gen console will require an always-on internet connection. With that constant communication with Sony's servers, implementing such an AI system would be straightforward. So, I'd guess this feature will debut with Sony's next-generation platform, which will hopefully give the company enough time to address the logistics and privacy risks inherent to remote AI monitoring.