VIRTUAL BEINGS

I have a confession to make: I love Valentine’s Day. I get that many people see it as the quintessence of consumerism. To those I reply: Has anyone, anywhere ever died from eating too many heart-shaped chocolate truffles? Touché. When I think of the dark side of Valentine’s Day, what comes to mind isn’t the oversupply of chocolate or the girly colors in all the shop windows, it’s the thorny but increasingly unavoidable subject of loneliness. Research out of Harvard’s Graduate School of Education* shows that Gen Z feels lonelier than any generation before it. Love and connection seem out of reach for an ever-growing number of people. As a techno optimist of sorts, I do believe that tech should be part of the solution for alleviating loneliness. But that doesn’t mean that anything tech has to offer as a “solution” can be taken at face value. Case in point: AI girlfriends & boyfriends. The incredible success of companies like Character.ai or Replika has catapulted those to the center of public attention. If you think that such services do more good than harm, I challenge you to show me a single executive at any of these companies who allows their own children to use them. Steve Jobs didn’t let his kids near an iPad for a reason. I believe that not just tech in general, but AI characters in particular can help bring people together and alleviate loneliness. A key inspiration for us at VIRTUAL BEINGS aren’t girl/boyfriends, but real pets. Research has shown time and again that pet owners are happier and more social than those without. Can we do the same with virtual pets - use them to create more connections between actual people? I sure hope so, and am willing to put our resources where my mouth is. More to come soon! https://lnkd.in/dDgHVy4X

Animation alone makes 3D characters feel alive. FALSE. I've recently been asked on the distinction between animation and interactive behavior in video games. While these concepts are often seen as one and the same, understanding their differences is key to appreciating the depth of modern gaming experiences. 🎞️ Animation in Gaming Animation in gaming is about creating visual sequences that bring characters and environments to life. This aspect is predetermined during the production phase, making it scripted and non-interactive. Its role is to enhance storytelling, provide aesthetic pleasure, and create an ambiance that enriches the game's overall appeal. 🧠 Interactive Behavior Explained On the other hand, interactive behavior is the coded intelligence that dictates how a character engages with the player and their environment. It can be realized by a wide range of algorithms, from simple decision trees via machine learning to architectures which try to mirror animal minds (we use all of these and more). Essentially, it's the 'brain' of the character, dictating how a non-player character (NPC) reacts to the player's interactions. 🔑 Distinguishing Between the Two Understanding the differences between animation and interactive behavior is crucial: 1️⃣ Scripted vs. Unscripted: Animation follows a script or set sequence, whereas interactive behavior is dynamic, changing based on player actions or environmental events. 2️⃣ Visual Impact vs. Gameplay Influence: While animation adds visual depth, it doesn’t directly affect gameplay. Interactive behavior, however, is affect by player actions and thereby makes characters feel responsive. 3️⃣ Craftsmanship vs. Coding: Animation is an art primarily driven by artists, whereas interactive behavior results from complex algorithms and coding. 🎬 Real-World Examples Consider Tweety the bird from the Looney Tunes animated series (Warner Bros.). He feels alive and wonderful, but nothing he does can be influenced by you. Once you’ve seen an episode, you can enjoy rewatching it but you can’t be surprised by it anymore (well - unless you happen to suffer from amnesia). Contrast this with our character Sunny. Our bird’s unscripted behavior, powered by KuteEngine, makes each interaction unique and unpredictable, reflecting a genuine, dynamic experience. To conclude, recognizing the distinction between animation and interactive behavior is vital in understanding the art and science behind creating immersive gaming experiences. Animation brings life to characters, while interactive behavior grants them agency. Together, they will be essential to the future of video games. #3danimation #animation #3d #gaming #interactive

🚀Space Companions is Officially Here! 🎮 We at VIRTUAL BEINGS are excited to announce that a demo of our first VR game, Space Companions, is now available for free on Meta Oculus App Lab! 🌌 What's the Game About? Space Companions is for anyone who's ever dreamed of nurturing a real pet. You start with hatching a baby bird, and then get to build an authentic bond with her. You feed her, watch her take her first wobbly steps, and you’re there as she grows. Every trick you teach, every game you play, you can see her confidence bloom, and you will unlock new mini-games and challenges. When she rests, you can enjoy playing board games with Garr-E, your trusted robot companion! This is just the beginning. We have so much planned ahead. Besides multiplayer, more cute pets with different personalities will join Space Companions in the future. 🤖 Behavioral AI for the win! Behind the magic lies our state-of-the-art KuteEngine™ technology. This behavioral AI engine seamlessly blends sentience, reactivity, and real-time dialogue to create lifelike, engaging characters that you can truly connect with. 👉 Try it now! https://lnkd.in/edjE2dYW #VirtualReality #VRGaming #GameRelease #NewGame #GamingCommunity #BehavioralAI

Disney recently celebrated its 100th birthday! And the company still has innovation in its DNA, as it unveiled several days ago the HoloTile, an innovative omnidirectional treadmill designed for multiplayer #VR gaming. But it's their 1981 book, 'Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life' by animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, that gives us profound insights into bringing characters to life. At VIRTUAL BEINGS, we’re inspired by these principles, initially crafted for animation, to enhance our approach to AI character interaction. Disney's "Illusion of Life" is based on 12 basic principles that transform drawings into lifelike characters. For example: - ‘Anticipation': This involves preparing the audience for an action, adding realism and engagement. Aladdin's preparatory movements before a leap or Jasmine's subtle gestures before expressing her thoughts in "Aladdin" showcase this principle. - 'Squash and Stretch': This principle adds elasticity to movements, making characters feel dynamic and flexible. Tigger's bouncy gait in "Winnie the Pooh" is a perfect example, where his actions stretch and squash to express energy and emotion. - 'Straight Ahead Action and Pose to Pose': This is about creating fluid, realistic movements. In "The Little Mermaid," Ariel’s swimming sequences demonstrate this principle, combining fluid motion with dramatic poses. - 'Follow Through and Overlapping Action': This adds realism to movements. In "Beauty and the Beast," Belle’s and Beast’s movements, especially in the dance scene, show their clothes and hair following the motion of their bodies, adding to the realism. Drawing inspiration from Disney’s animation legacy, we at VIRTUAL BEINGS have created KuteEngine™ to revolutionize AI character creation by integrating key Disney principles and empowering developers: - ‘Anticipation’: The engine allows developers to automate anticipatory actions, freeing them to focus on the overall intent of their interactive behaviors. - ‘Squash and Stretch’: KuteEngine simplifies the dynamics of 'Squash and Stretch', enabling devs to easily bestow characters with lifelike elasticity and expressiveness. - ‘Straight Ahead Action and Pose to Pose’: By handling the fluid transition between poses, KuteEngine allows for seamless, natural character movements that are generated in realtime and interact with a dynamic world, reflecting the fluid motion seen in Disney animations. - ‘Follow Through and Overlapping Action’: The engine streamlines complex movement detailing, letting devs focus on the broader emotional and physical narrative, akin to the realistic motion in Disney's works. KuteEngine™ melds these timeless animation principles with advanced AI, enhancing interactivity and offering developers new horizons in character design. #disney100 #disney #ai #behavioralai #illusionoflife