Mikel Arteta hailed a magical night after Arsenal beat Chelsea 1-0 in the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final to reach a first Wembley final in six years.

Leading 3-2 on aggregate, the hosts weathered late pressure at the Emirates before Kai Havertz scored on the break in the seventh minute of stoppage time to set up a meeting with either Manchester City or Newcastle on March 22.

Not since Arteta’s first season in charge when the Gunners lifted the FA Cup inside an empty national stadium during the coronavirus pandemic have the team given themselves the chance to play for silverware, but their recent domestic wobble appears to be firmly behind them after they dug deep in a game of few chances.

“It’s the best vitamins we can put in our bodies,” said Arteta.

“We’re playing every three days. The fact that we worked so hard to achieve this moment and to have this moment together, it’s just magical. You can see the joy, the smiles, the energy in the dressing room.”

A buoyant atmosphere inside the ground helped Arsenal over the line, with the mood transformed from the nervousness that appeared to affect the team during January’s goalless draw with Liverpool and defeat to Manchester United here.

“The crowd was brilliant,” said Arteta. “They brought so much energy and belief to the team in different moments when it was very much needed. We deserve to be together at Wembley in a few weeks.

“The energy was very good. From the beginning I sensed that it was different.”

Saturday’s 4-0 win away to Leeds, which ended a three-game winless run in the Premier League and sent the team six points clear, also seemed to restore much of the confidence that fired their ascent to the summit during the first half of the season.

Questions will likely continue to surround Arteta and his team until the 22-year wait for the title is ended but the manager was confident that booking their place at Wembley can provide a springboard.

“It’s about learning from previous experiences,” he said. “Today was a very different game from the (fist leg) at Stamford Bridge. We dealt with it really well, the way the team competed and understood what we had to do. Really impressive. Now let’s win the final.”

For Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior, defeat ended a five-game winning run.

It was, though, a significantly improved performance from the first leg which came during a turbulent week just a few days after his appointment.

“In the first leg, I’m not making excuses, but we had an illness go through the camp on the day of the game – we had four players missing – and I’d been in charge for three days,” he said.

“I cannot fault the application, intensity or the fight of the players.

“What we need to do is remember this is the start and I’m really, really happy with a lot of things I’m seeing.

“You want to get the results, but we need to make sure we rest and recover and we keep improving as we go.”

Take Two Interactive’s CEO, Strauss Zelnick, recently confirmed that GTA 6 will not be using generative AI to procedurally generate its world. Ever since the game’s development was officially announced, enthusiasts discussed whether Rockstar Games was using any Artificial Intelligence to build it. While modern titles often use different kinds of AI, GTA 6 will not be using Generative AI.

Speaking to Games Industry.biz, Take Two Interactive’s CEO explained that Rockstar Games create their games very carefully, developing every single world detail from the ground up. He added that because of such attention to detail, they can make gripping and immersive entertainment products.

Here’s what Strauss Zelnick said:

“Specifically with regards to GTA 6, Generative AI has zero part in what Rockstar Games is building. Their worlds are handcrafted. That’s what differentiates them. They’re built from the ground up, building by building, street by street, neighborhood by neighborhood. They’re not procedurally generated, they shouldn’t be. That’s what makes great entertainment.”

This is not the first time Zelnick has spoken against generative AI. In a conversation with CNBC a few months ago, he explained that anything created using the technology cannot be protected or copyrighted. Additionally, it might not be as good as real developers, creating a title from the ground up.

Despite GTA 6 not using Generative AI, Take Two CEO shows interest in use of AI in games

While Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick confirmed that GTA 6 will not use generative AI, he stated that he has always been interested in other AI tools being used in the gaming industry. Speaking to Games Industry.biz, he said that Take-Two has been an industry leader in using various Artificial Intelligence, which have helped their studios save time and money.

Here’s what he said:

“On the topic of AI, I’ve been enthusiastic since the very beginning. This company’s products have always been built with machine learning and artificial intelligence. We’ve actually always been a leader in the space, and right now we have hundreds of pilots and implementations across our company, including within our studios. And we’re already seeing instances where generative AI tools are driving costs and time efficiencies.”

One of the most commonly used AI in video games is when developers create NPCs (non-playable characters). These are characters that roam around or drive around the game world. They can react to various incidents and even remember the protagonists and their actions.

It is safe to say that GTA 6, which is set to release on November 19, 2026, will have a great NPC system, along with various other AI tools.

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