At Steam Indie Connect in South Korea on October 27, 2026, Valve representatives said they did not want to dictate which tools developers use, according to Inven Global’s account of the discussion. Steam’s current AI disclosure rules focus on specific AI-generated content shipped with a game and consumed by players, rather than setting out a blanket ban on games made with AI.
What Steam asks developers to disclose
Steam’s Content Survey distinguishes between AI-generated content created during development and content generated while a game is running. Developers must complete the survey’s three sections before submitting a game for review.
The disclosure section focuses on AI-created content that ships with the game and is consumed by players, including artwork, sound, narrative, and localization. Valve says it reviews that content under the same standards as non-AI content, including checks for legality, infringement, and consistency with the game’s marketing materials. Steam says efficiency gains from AI-powered development tools are not the focus of this section.
For content generated live during play, developers must describe safeguards intended to prevent illegal content. Steam also says it does not currently want to ship adult-only sexual content generated live by AI.
Steam’s Content Survey sets out these disclosure categories and requirements.
How Valve described Steam Next Fest discovery
Marc Wilkinson said Steam Next Fest gives games virtually random exposure during its first two days, followed by personalized recommendations. He said the initial randomness is meant to discourage developers from gaming the system while giving games a chance to be seen. Wilkinson also acknowledged that this approach exposes some low-quality games, and said Valve staff were discussing how to address the problem without announcing a specific fix or date.
Wilkinson said wishlists indicate marketing performance, while purchases and play drive exposure. That was his explanation at the event, not a full technical description of Steam’s recommendation systems.
Tom Giardino said Next Fest participation had grown from roughly 50 or 100 titles about three years earlier to thousands by the October 2026 event. NeoTeo previously covered a separate measure of that festival’s scale, 8,011 matches on Steam’s press-preview page.
The discussion also included a developer’s account of threats demanding payment to avoid an AI-made clone. Giardino said he had not heard of such cases before, described extortion as an issue closer to law enforcement, and asked developers to report threats to Valve so the company could look into them and help.
