EVE Online Studio CEO Explains Fenris Rebrand and DeepMind Deal
The interview frames the studio's independence and DeepMind partnership as a deliberate move toward AI research, with the CEO positioning EVE Online as a uniquely difficult environment for AI systems.
Reporting from 1 source: Game Spark.
CCP Games CEO Hilmar Veigar Petursson discussed the studio's May 2026 management buyout from Pearl Abyss, its rebranding as Fenris Creations, and a new AI research partnership with Google DeepMind. He also detailed the externally funded EVE Frontier project and the philosophy behind the company's new name.
Hilmar Veigar Petursson proposed the management buyout himself last year, approaching Pearl Abyss while DeepMind talks ran in parallel. The two efforts converged, producing an MBO backed by Google and Icelandic investors alongside the research partnership.
The Fenris name draws on the Norse wolf that swallows the sun at Ragnarok, which Petursson reads as a symbol of entropy and the destruction-creation loop he says keeps EVE's economy healthy after 23 years. He noted that since the independence closed, roughly six to seven weeks ago, the visible changes have been limited to email addresses and the logo.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.