
Unreal Engine veteran exits Epic as industry gears up for AI-driven shift
Unreal Engine veteran Sjoerd De Jong has left Epic Games after 12 years, saying the era of his approach has come to a close as the industry reaches a pivotal point. De Jong, who began working with Unreal in 1999 and later led Epic’s evangelism and developer experience before taking a product role, announced his departure last week. His exit comes as Epic previews Unreal Engine 6 with AI integrations (Claude and Gemini) intended to speed tasks like level setup, rigs, lighting, and other content creation, highlighting a broader shift that developers will need to adapt to.













