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Game Developer Ubisoft Slides amid Muted Reception for 'Star Wars Outlaws'

A view of the Ubisoft Entertainment logo on a panel during a news conference at the company's headquarters in Saint-Mande, near Paris, France, September 8, 2022. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
A view of the Ubisoft Entertainment logo on a panel during a news conference at the company's headquarters in Saint-Mande, near Paris, France, September 8, 2022. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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Game Developer Ubisoft Slides amid Muted Reception for 'Star Wars Outlaws'

A view of the Ubisoft Entertainment logo on a panel during a news conference at the company's headquarters in Saint-Mande, near Paris, France, September 8, 2022. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
A view of the Ubisoft Entertainment logo on a panel during a news conference at the company's headquarters in Saint-Mande, near Paris, France, September 8, 2022. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Shares in French video game maker Ubisoft fell on Tuesday for a second consecutive day following a sluggish performance of its two recent releases, including the long-awaited "Star Wars Outlaws".

The shares, which closed 5.1% lower on Monday, were down 2.4% by 1114 GMT, trading at their lowest levels since 2015 and adding to their over 30% drop since the start of the year.

The decline was driven by a muted reception of Star Wars Outlaws, released on Friday, which follows lower than expected interest for the company's free-to-play game Xdefiant, said Midcap Partners analyst Charles-Louis Planade, Reuters reported.

The Outlaws premiere was one of the two big major game releases Ubisoft had slated for this year, with Assasin's Creed Shadows scheduled for release on Nov. 15.

After four years of negative cash flows amid game cancellations and delays, the family-owned company has been betting on these releases to support its financial recovery.

Chief Financial Officer Frederick Duguet said in July that Ubisoft expected the launch of Outlaws to boost net bookings in the July-September quarter.

Despite an overall positive reception by critics, Star Wars Outlaws had a "generally unfavorable" users' score of 4.9 out of 10 on review aggregation website Metacritic as of Tuesday.

"Star Wars Outlaws has struggled to meet our sales expectations despite positive critical reviews," J.P.Morgan analyst Daniel Kerven said in a note.

The game's development budget was at least 30% higher than that of Assasin's Creed Mirage, released last year, while data from video game live-streaming platform Twitch suggested it was underperforming AC Mirage by about 15%, Kerven added.

Kerven also lowered his sales expectations for Outlaws by 2 million units, to 5.5 million units in the year through March 2025.

Planade added that after a strong initial interest for Xdefiant, a first-person shooter game launched in May, there has been a sharp decline in Twitch viewership, and the game would likely have a minimal impact on Ubisoft's results over the next few quarters.

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SDAIA Lists ALLaM 7B Arabic Language Model on Hugging Face

SDAIA Lists ALLaM 7B Arabic Language Model on Hugging Face
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SDAIA Lists ALLaM 7B Arabic Language Model on Hugging Face

SDAIA Lists ALLaM 7B Arabic Language Model on Hugging Face

The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) has disclosed the listing of the generative Arabic Large Language Model (ALLaM) —7 billion parameters category— on the Hugging Face platform. This platform, a prominent global open-source repository for natural language processing (NLP) resources, now hosts the nationally developed model, making it accessible to a global audience of developers and researchers for utilization in artificial intelligence applications.
SDAIA asserts that ALLaM is positioned as one of the preeminent generative language models for the Arabic language worldwide, SPA reported.
This initiative aligns with the strategic objectives of the Kingdom's Vision 2030, under the leadership of Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince, Prime Minister and SDAIA Board of Directors Chairman, who supports SDAIA's mandate to strengthen the Kingdom's position as a global technology hub for artificial intelligence and digital innovation.
ALLaM is a large language model distinguished by its precision and efficacy in the comprehension and processing of Arabic. Its capabilities encompass text summarization, content generation, and other functionalities, positioning it as a tool for the development of smart applications. The model's training, conducted on an extensive and diverse Arabic language dataset, is cited as contributing to its performance across varied operational environments.
According to SDAIA, the availability of ALLaM on the Hugging Face platform is intended to facilitate access for the scientific and technical community, enabling the development of artificial intelligence-driven applications.
The listing on Hugging Face represents a phase in the model's ongoing development. ALLaM was initially integrated into IBM's Watsonx platform, which facilitated advanced Arabic language analysis and processing through artificial intelligence solutions. Subsequently, it was launched on Microsoft's Azure cloud platform, providing developers and enterprises access to advanced cloud computing environments.
During the LEAP25 conference, Qualcomm, in collaboration with the ALLaM development team, announced the model's availability on the Qualcomm AI Cloud. Additionally, the "ALLAM AI PC," a computer incorporating advanced artificial intelligence technologies designed to enhance user interaction with the Arabic language, was unveiled.