Well we got another developer interview here, this time from Gamecrate, where they talk about the AI a bit:
GC: How much has the AI changed in this expansion?
DM: Well it's gotten a lot better. We've done a tremendous amount of work to get the AI to not just handle the new features -- certainly water settlement is a big one, the new diplomacy is a big one -- but to be better at the features from the base game. We've put particular improvement in their tactical and domestic operations, how they manage and fight, how they pursue the victory conditions, their tech choices.
Part of the doors that opened with new diplomacy is getting the AI to play more characterfully. They don't all play basically the same, they've got a lot more strong preferences and personality in what they're going to do. Their personality traits in the diplomacy system drive that. So not only is the AI generally more intelligent, they're much more idiosyncratic, so they're much more fun to play against, they're a little bit predictable and maybe even caricaturish, they have sort of foibles and things like that for you to exploit, so there's a lot more storytelling in that. So the AI is better and more diverse at the same time.
They also talk about the hybrid affinities a bit:
GC: We didn't see the hybrid affinity units in this gameplay demo, but can you tell us anything more about what those are and how they will feel to play?
WM: The hybrid affinities are kind of our answer to multi-classing. In the base game we encouraged players to traverse the tech tree, sort of role-playing a little bit. Like, what would I do if I were this civilization, what technologies do I want, how would I make these decisions that I'm prompted with? But what we found was players would often get into a situation where players would make the decision they wanted, but they've kind of gimped themselves, they can't unlock higher level units because they have mixed affinity, and the game really wants you to funnel into one so that you can pursue a victory condition.
So our hybrid affinities are an answer to that. They're three new affinities that are not really averages, but whole new ideas based on the philosophies of the two that they blend. They have a whole different look, new unique units and new upgrade paths for the base units, so there are a lot of unique new military toys you get with hybrid affinities.
GC: Is there any diplomatic effect to these hybrid affinities? Do the other leaders pay attention to if you're a hybrid or not?
WM: They certainly pay attention to differential in affinity. So if you are more Purity and this guy is more Supremacy, his AI might care about that. There aren't special points for the hybrids, so if I accumulate X in Purity and X in Harmony and they're equal, then I will be hybrid-ized. But the AI is always looking at what you're doing, you affinity choices along with everything else, and building an opinion of you.
GC:We got to see some Artifacts in the gameplay demo, and it looked like there was one that could be used as a temporary de-buff on an enemy unit? Is that correct?
DM: Possibly. I don't think we can comment on the specific Artifact mechanics, but they either manifest as yield gains -- kind of like clearing an alien nest or completing an expedition -- or you can use them to build buildings or wonders that you can only get through artifacts, or the artifacts unlock the ability to build them. Those have some pretty wild impacts, and they can do things that have not been possible in Civ before, up to and including manipulating the battlefield like you're describing.
http://www.gamecrate.com/interview-...s-improved-ai-and-mobile-aquatic-cities/11115
GC: How much has the AI changed in this expansion?
DM: Well it's gotten a lot better. We've done a tremendous amount of work to get the AI to not just handle the new features -- certainly water settlement is a big one, the new diplomacy is a big one -- but to be better at the features from the base game. We've put particular improvement in their tactical and domestic operations, how they manage and fight, how they pursue the victory conditions, their tech choices.
Part of the doors that opened with new diplomacy is getting the AI to play more characterfully. They don't all play basically the same, they've got a lot more strong preferences and personality in what they're going to do. Their personality traits in the diplomacy system drive that. So not only is the AI generally more intelligent, they're much more idiosyncratic, so they're much more fun to play against, they're a little bit predictable and maybe even caricaturish, they have sort of foibles and things like that for you to exploit, so there's a lot more storytelling in that. So the AI is better and more diverse at the same time.
They also talk about the hybrid affinities a bit:
GC: We didn't see the hybrid affinity units in this gameplay demo, but can you tell us anything more about what those are and how they will feel to play?
WM: The hybrid affinities are kind of our answer to multi-classing. In the base game we encouraged players to traverse the tech tree, sort of role-playing a little bit. Like, what would I do if I were this civilization, what technologies do I want, how would I make these decisions that I'm prompted with? But what we found was players would often get into a situation where players would make the decision they wanted, but they've kind of gimped themselves, they can't unlock higher level units because they have mixed affinity, and the game really wants you to funnel into one so that you can pursue a victory condition.
So our hybrid affinities are an answer to that. They're three new affinities that are not really averages, but whole new ideas based on the philosophies of the two that they blend. They have a whole different look, new unique units and new upgrade paths for the base units, so there are a lot of unique new military toys you get with hybrid affinities.
GC: Is there any diplomatic effect to these hybrid affinities? Do the other leaders pay attention to if you're a hybrid or not?
WM: They certainly pay attention to differential in affinity. So if you are more Purity and this guy is more Supremacy, his AI might care about that. There aren't special points for the hybrids, so if I accumulate X in Purity and X in Harmony and they're equal, then I will be hybrid-ized. But the AI is always looking at what you're doing, you affinity choices along with everything else, and building an opinion of you.
GC:We got to see some Artifacts in the gameplay demo, and it looked like there was one that could be used as a temporary de-buff on an enemy unit? Is that correct?
DM: Possibly. I don't think we can comment on the specific Artifact mechanics, but they either manifest as yield gains -- kind of like clearing an alien nest or completing an expedition -- or you can use them to build buildings or wonders that you can only get through artifacts, or the artifacts unlock the ability to build them. Those have some pretty wild impacts, and they can do things that have not been possible in Civ before, up to and including manipulating the battlefield like you're describing.
http://www.gamecrate.com/interview-...s-improved-ai-and-mobile-aquatic-cities/11115
Will probably need to create some male, misogynistic, war-loving Civ-Mods just to destroy that 'Equality of Outcome'-Fantasy. 
