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Dive Brief:
Toy company Hasbro is deploying AI across financial planning, forecasting, order management, supply chain operations and daily activities, according to CEO Chris Cocks.
Teams within the company have a choice on how they use the technology, including not to use it at all when it doesn’t fit their objectives, per Cocks.
“We’re taking a human-centric, creator-led approach,” Cocks said on a Feb. 10 earnings call with analysts. “We’re beyond experimentation.”
Dive Insight:
Hasbro isn’t just thinking about AI technology; it has already incorporated it into its structure.
The company has clear guidelines around responsible use and how to protect its IP, per Cocks. The business is also partnering with Google Gemini, OpenAI and ElevenLabs to embed AI into its workflows.
Hasbro expects that the inclusion of the tech will free up over 1 million hours of “lower-value work,” which will give workers the ability to reinvest the time into innovation, creativity and serving its customers.
“Great IP plus great storytelling is durable as technology evolves, and it positions us to benefit from disruption rather than being displaced by it,” Cocks said.
With toys for example, AI-assisted design — along with 3D printing — has reduced the time from concept to prototype by around 80%.
“Instead of … just doing one toy concept, we do 10 toy concepts in the same amount of time at the same amount of cost,” Cocks said.
The discussion of AI came amid Hasbro reporting Q4 and full-year earnings. For the year, revenue increased 14% driven by 45% growth in the Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming segment. Net revenues in Q4 increased over 31% to $1.4 billion.
The day the company released earnings, it also announced a multiyear licensing partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products to make Hasbro the primary toy licensee for Harry Potter, including the upcoming HBO “Harry Potter” series. The partnership will launch in 2027.