ICONIC21 says AI-powered dealers create a new category between RNG and live casino games

Artificial intelligence is moving from back-office efficiency and personalisation into the games themselves, according to Andrii Savyntsev, product owner at live dealer and casino games provider ICONIC21. He argues that conversational AI is creating a new category of casino product that sits between silent RNG titles and live dealer tables.

Savyntsev says RNG games succeeded because they were fast, efficient and solitary, letting players join, play a few hands and leave without committing to a live table. That design, in his view, also left a gap. Players tended to choose either silent RNG or live casino, with little in between, and conversational AI has changed that calculation.

ICONIC21 launched iDealer Blackjack in May, a seven-seat RNG blackjack game featuring an AI-powered dealer. It was developed with RAVATAR using the company's real-time interactive AI avatar technology. ICONIC21 describes the dealer as a real-time presence that welcomes players by name, remembers past interactions and adapts to each session.

A central lesson, Savyntsev says, is transparency. Rather than trying to blur the line between human and artificial, the company made clear from the start that players were dealing with an AI dealer in an RNG game. He says this honesty became a strength, removing a layer of social friction and letting players engage with the experience on its own terms. He contrasts this with products that try to imitate human dealers as closely as possible, an approach whose sceptics argue that players value authenticity, trust and the atmosphere of live casino.

The article points to wider evidence that some people feel more comfortable with AI than with another person, noting that FanDuel co-founder Nigel Eccles has said some people find human dealers intimidating. It also cites the conversational AI market, valued at $14.3bn last year and projected in research published in June to reach $78.9bn by 2033.

Savyntsev stresses that the product is not meant to replace live casino. He says live tables serve a different player need and mood, with the atmosphere, human interaction and social dynamics remaining distinct. iDealer stays within RNG, he says, and the shift is experiential rather than structural. From observations at its own tables, ICONIC21 reports that conversations often went beyond gameplay, covering trivia, sport and current events, and sometimes switching between languages.