The hot UK industry that could be facing a wipeout

Don't tell Liam and Noel, but the biggest entertainment event of 2025 won't be their reunion, it'll be the launch of Grand Theft Auto VI.

- CHRIS BLACKHURST

The long-awaited video game sequel is expected to generate $3bn (£2.4bn) in its first 12 months – twice the figure earned by its predecessor, GTA V.

By comparison, the biggest movies of 2024 – Inside Out 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine – could only muster $1.7bn and $1.3bn respectively. As for the Gallagher brothers and their recordbreaking stint at Wembley, they won’t even be close. Already, the trailer for GTA VI has been viewed more than 225 million times on YouTube.

It’s also a rarity these days: a British, world-beating tech success. The GTA strand is developed by Rockstar Games, based in Dundee. In all, more than 2,000 people will have worked on the new game, in Scotland and elsewhere.

Not only is GTA proof that we should take video gaming more seriously, as something Britain does extremely well – the sector employs thousands and is a huge domestic wealth creator – but it also means we need to pay close attention to anything threatening that hegemony.

This is why, when the head of the trade body for the UK video gaming and interactive entertainment industry warns of growing danger, we should sit up and take notice.

Nick Poole, chief executive of UKIE (the Association for UK Interactive Entertainment), is concerned that we – and especially our government and lawmakers – are too complacent in our approach to artificial intelligence, that we run the risk of losing our jewels, of enabling AI and its use of large language models such as GPT. “If we want