Playtech Research Backs Common Standards for Gambling AI
Artificial intelligence is playing a bigger role in identifying customers who may be vulnerable to gambling-related harm, but new research argues that the industry needs a consistent way to measure how well these systems perform.
Research supported by Playtech Protect outlines a benchmarking framework that would allow casino operators, technology companies, and regulators to compare AI risk detection models using the same evaluation methods.
AI systems currently examine customer activity such as betting habits, playing sessions, product preferences, and other behavioral patterns to flag players who may need additional support. However, different companies build and test their models using different datasets, definitions of gambling harm, and performance measures, making it difficult to compare claims about accuracy.
Proposal Focuses on Fair AI Comparisons
The research reviews existing approaches to AI-based player protection rather than introducing a new detection model. It suggests using anonymized player data divided into separate training and testing datasets.
Developers would receive the training data, including selected indicators connected to gambling harm, while the testing data would keep those indicators hidden. Participants would then submit predictions for independent assessment against the concealed results.
Instead of producing one overall ranking, the proposed system would evaluate models across different situations, including individual gambling sessions, several days of activity, and longer periods. It also recommends testing systems with different customer groups covering various products, regions, and engagement levels.
Privacy, Oversight Remain Central
The study also examines ways to protect sensitive customer information and commercial data during benchmarking. Suggested approaches include independent data trusts, regulator-managed repositories, synthetic datasets, secure testing environments, and evaluation methods that do not require companies to reveal confidential details about their systems.
Researchers believe independent organizations, regulators, research groups, or data trusts could oversee these assessments. They also recommend documenting how AI systems operate, applying consistent risk definitions, testing with fresh datasets, checking for fairness, monitoring changes in player behavior, and reviewing whether interventions reduce gambling-related harm.
The paper adds that if the gambling sector does not establish credible evaluation standards on its own, regulators may introduce stricter requirements. Spain is highlighted as one market already moving toward closer oversight, alongside broader European efforts to introduce more detailed rules for AI models and related technologies.
The research was produced by eight academics specializing in player risk AI from institutions including the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, the Division on Addiction at Harvard Medical School, the University of Calgary, the University of Sydney, Washington State University, and Focal Research Consultants.
Raising 2026 Outlook After Strong First Half
Separate from the AI benchmarking research, Playtech recently reported stronger-than-expected trading for the first half of 2026 and lifted its full-year outlook.
The company said growth across the Americas, particularly in the United States, helped push adjusted EBITDA for the January to June period above €155 million. Playtech credited its partnership with Hard Rock Digital for much of the momentum, describing the operator as one of its largest customers.
While management expects second-half earnings to ease because of lower revenue from that partnership, investment tied to a Brazil agreement, and higher UK Remote Gaming Duty, the company now expects full-year adjusted EBITDA to reach at least €270 million, exceeding current market forecasts.
Entering Alberta’s Regulated iGaming Market
Playtech has also expanded its North American footprint by launching its casino and live gaming content in Alberta’s newly regulated online gaming market. The company entered the province through licensed operator partners on the market’s opening day, following the same approach it took when Ontario introduced regulated iGaming in 2022.
Playtech’s initial offering includes titles such as Adventures Beyond Wonderland, Mega Fire Blaze™ Roulette, and Oink Oink Oink™. The company said it plans to broaden its content over time while working with local partners. Playtech also welcomed Alberta’s regulatory framework, highlighting the province’s centralized self-exclusion system as an important player protection measure.
Source:
Playtech Research Highlights Need for Player Risk AI Benchmarks, livedealers.com, July 27, 2026.
