Steam Next Fest ran from October 19 to 26 with more than 7,000 games, almost double the number at June's event, GamesRadar reported. Snapshots of SteamDB data suggest about 1 in 3 of them disclosed AI use.
NeoTeo's snapshot on October 21 counted 7,217 listings, of which 2,628, or 36.4%, carried the "AI Content Disclosed" tag. TheGamer's snapshot from October 20 counted 2,596 of 7,145, and its headline describes AI usage jumping "from one in five to one in three."
The count depends on when and how it was taken. When the event opened, GamingOnLinux counted at least 1,054 of 7,164 demos, about 14.7%, with an AI disclosure notice on SteamDB's event page. The later snapshots from TheGamer and NeoTeo found more than twice as many.
Steam's disclosure covers AI-made content that ships with a game and that players see or hear, such as artwork, sound, narrative and localization, according to Valve's Steamworks documentation. Since a January 2026 rewording, reported by PC Gamer, the form says AI tools used only to work faster during development are not its focus. A single percentage still mixes games with a few generated assets and games built mostly from them.
Players have responded loudly and are asking Valve to add an AI filter to the Discovery Queue. On r/aigamedev, developers described the backlash as an "AI fiasco" and posted "is this AI slop" feedback requests. One thread surveyed developers about asking Steam to remove the disclosure label.
Why it matters: Next Fest is one of the year's biggest discovery events for indie developers. Once a third of the field discloses AI, the label is no longer unusual. It also becomes something players can filter on, which could cost visibility for developers who disclose honestly.
Caveat: all of these figures come from third-party snapshots of SteamDB data, not from Valve, and they differ depending on what each count treats as disclosure.
What to watch next is whether Valve adds an AI filter. Its decision will shape whether disclosure stays voluntary in practice.
