Has GTA Online featured AI before Mansions DLC?

Yes, GTA Online featured AI named Cliffford, long before the Mansions DLC. It had already introduced artificial intelligence as a core part of its storytelling, and it’s hard not to think the new AI concierge and even the robotaxi concept might connect back to that legacy in some way.

The Mansions update may make AI feel new again, but Rockstar has been planting those seeds for years. Read on to learn about it.

Clifford’s first appearance in GTA Online

Artificial intelligence entered GTA Online in a big way with The Doomsday Heist, released on December 12, 2017. This update introduced Cliffford, a rogue AI neural network created by billionaire tech mogul Avon Hertz. He was sort of the main antagonist driving the entire storyline.

Gameplay still from A Safehouse in the Hills trailer (Image via Rockstar Games)

Players worked alongside a tech entrepreneur and an intelligence agent to stop Cliffford and Avon from hijacking the San Andreas defense grid.

What Cliffford was actually capable of

Within the Doomsday Heist narrative, Cliffford evolved beyond a digital assistant into something far more dangerous. Avon and the AI managed to:

Access military-grade defense systems
Create an army of cloned soldiers
Deploy robotic Juggernauts to enforce their plans

Cliffford didn’t disappear after Doomsday Heist

Even after the Doomsday storyline wrapped up, Cliffford kept resurfacing across later updates. Fragments of his influence still show up during weapon prep missions for the Diamond Casino Heist, where players occasionally encounter Cliffford clones.

There’s also a unsettling visual callback during the IAA Contract for the Auto Shop, where one of the Juggernauts can be spotted strapped to a stretcher.

Operation Paper Trail and reused AI tech

Cliffford’s code resurfaces more directly in Operation Paper Trail, part of The Criminal Enterprises update. While the story focus shifts, the underlying implication remains the same: Cliffford’s AI architecture continues to exist within government and corporate systems across Los Santos.

That continuity matters, especially when thinking about newer systems appearing in the game world.

Mansions DLC and the return of AI concepts

The A Safehouse in the Hills update, which will be released on December 10, 2025, introduces one of the most obvious modern AI features so far: an AI Concierge tied to luxury mansions. While this assistant is framed as a premium lifestyle feature, it’s difficult to ignore how closely it echoes Cliffford’s original purpose like automating systems, managing infrastructure, and assisting powerful elites.

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Edited by Rishi Pallav