FIGHTING FIRE WITH FIRE C


André Pimenta Ribeiro, CEO & Co-Founder of Anybrain, explains how AI-generated cheats are being fought… with AI!


heating has been synonymous with gaming since the dawn of competition. The drive to win has


pushed some players to break the rules, often ruining the experience for everyone else. Over the last two decades, the rise of online competitive gaming has intensified this conflict, but the emergence of Generative AI (GenAI) has escalated the war to unprecedented levels. The struggle between cheaters and anti-cheat technology is a long-standing


cycle of innovation and countermeasure. Historically, when a studio introduced new security, cheaters would reverse-engineer it to create a workaround. Now, with the ability to generate sophisticated cheats using AI, the problem has reached a breaking point. To combat this, the industry is adopting an age-old philosophy:


fight fire with fire. This is the realm of AI anti-cheat, with companies like Anybrain leading the charge. Eschewing GenAI in favour of traditional Machine Learning (ML) algorithms, Anybrain monitors player activity in real-time, comparing actions against confirmed AI player profiles. By focusing on behavioural outcomes, it catches the subtle cheaters who often slip through the cracks of traditional software.


THE INVESTIGATOR, NOT THE EXECUTIONER Anybrain’s origins lie in science, specifically psychology, where the technology was first used to identify mental fatigue through behavioural biometrics. Recognising the potential for gaming, the founders pivoted their ML expertise to monitor player behaviour. Operating in the cloud rather than


at the kernel level, Anybrain scans player inputs across all platforms to ensure they feel natural. Even the most elite human players possess a degree of inconsistency; they cannot match the inhuman precision and mechanical perfection of an AI. It is within this “forced perfection” that Anybrain


identifies foul play. If a match is detected, the player is flagged for review. Crucially, Anybrain does not issue


bans itself. This prevents the risk of rogue software decimating a community through mass “false positives”. Instead, Anybrain acts as a digital investigator, gathering evidence for the developer, who remains the final judge, jury, and executioner. The system also tackles smurfing - the practice where banned


players create new accounts to bypass restrictions. By creating internal behavioural profiles, the AI can identify when a banned individual resurfaces under a different pseudonym, providing developers with an extra layer of intelligence.


EMBARKING UPON AN ANTI-CHEAT STACK A prominent real-world application of this technology can be seen in Embark Studios’ Arc Raiders, following its successful implementation in The Finals. To ensure accuracy, the AI was calibrated using thousands of hours of professional-level play, teaching the system to recognise the limits of human skill. It analyses mouse movements and keyboard inputs for non-human patterns, evolving constantly to detect new aimbots and recoil modifiers. Embark utilises Anybrain as part of a comprehensive “anti-cheat stack,” alongside Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) and their bespoke Abnormal Match Compensation system. This multi- layered approach detects cheating at every stage while offering compensation to those affected by unfair play. The results speak for themselves: Embark has already banned tens of thousands of players, significantly improving the health of their community. Anybrain is not a “silver bullet”


solution; it is a vital component of a modern security infrastructure. Just as home security requires more than just a locked door, Anybrain serves as the security camera, monitoring for suspicious behaviour. Even as AI generates more complex cheats, the ultimate goal of the cheater remains the same - and as long as those outcomes can be analysed, they can be stopped.


May/June 2026 MCV/DEVELOP | 13


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