Krafton and Nvidia team up to create smarter AI characters for PUBG and inZOI

Nvidia and Crafton It has unveiled an innovative on-device AI that will enable smarter AI characters for PUBG and inZoi.

The companies have built a Small Language Model (SLM) specifically designed for video games. The technology will be introduced for the first time in the PUBG series, which has sold more than 80 million copies, and in the upcoming life simulation game inZOI.

The AI ​​language model is on-device, meaning it stays on your local computer and is not tied to the cloud. For gaming, this language model will bring unprecedented levels of immersion to games, creating for the first time co-playable characters (CPC), which enhance the traditional role of the non-playable character (NPC), said Kang Wook Lee, Chairman of the Board of Directors. From Krafton’s deep learning division, in an interview with GamesBeat during CES 2025.

In a video, Crafton demonstrated how an NPC can help carry a human player to victory in a battle royale game. You can see in this video embedded in this story how the NPC can dance and talk with the player, and help with tactics as the pair hope to win a chicken dinner against other humans. Lee believes that this innovation is something that can help PUBG grow its audience, considering that the game is eight years old.

Why is this important?

CPC can communicate naturally and verbally with players and each other, opening up immersive experiences like never before, Crafton said. This technology represents a major leap in immersive gaming and redefines the role of artificial intelligence in the future of entertainment.

How this comes to life specifically in the PUBG and inZOI franchise:

PUBG franchise: CPC will introduce a new SLM-powered companion who can communicate verbally and cooperate with the player. Players can converse and strategize with their AI-powered CPC companion just as they would with a human companion, greatly enhancing gameplay.

inZOI: Players will experience a simulation in which they explore not only their characters’ lives, but everyone’s lives in a large-scale simulation, where citizens, known as “Zois,” interact and make choices based on their free will and real-time experiences. Zois will follow fashion trends, spread rumors, develop reputations, and more, with the support of SLM.

Most importantly, this technology runs 100% locally on the user’s device, without the need to connect to a data center, improving data privacy and responsiveness and eliminating the need for subscription fees.

Description of the inZOI video game trailer

In inZOI, each of the city’s 300 characters (called “Zois”) is driven by approximately 600 different mental data points, forming the basis of the game’s Real Life Simulation (RLS) experience. While traditional rule-based systems can produce diverse results, they ultimately fall short in effectively using Zoi’s attributes to generate context-appropriate behaviors.

To address this issue, Krafton introduced “Smart Zoi” using the on-device language model, making Zois more dynamic by incorporating attributes such as age, personality, and current situations. This enables them not only to perform calculated tasks, but also to modify their behavior when faced with unexpected scenarios, just like real humans.

At the end of each day, Zoi analyzes her experiences, shapes her actions for the next day, and fosters continued growth into a truly unique and personal person. This dynamic interaction enhances a diverse, vibrant city full of unexpected events that create a highly immersive simulation experience.

“We wanted to build something really different from NPCs. Why do we call this CPC? Because it’s a character you can build yourself. The first example is PUBG CPC,” he told me.

In PUBG, you can play in pairs, competing against other human players to be the only survivors of a PUBG match.

“It’s based on the whole language model, the text model, the text-to-speech model, all of that together basically being able to think about what they should actually be able to hear,” Lee said. “There are a lot of things you can do. For example, you could have some strategic descriptions. Hey, I want to play in a different way. Every action sequence is done by inferring the language model. And at the end of the day, you can think about what would be It the next day is also planned through language model inferences and so on.

Crafton has a team of about 80 people working on developing technology for the AI ​​characters. It’s a bit crude in some ways, but the character basically acts like a human player. Players will be able to use technology and create their own characters.

“Of course, they’re not 100% human yet, but this is the first AI character where you’ll hear the answers within 1.5 seconds,” Lee said.

He told me he’s optimistic about AI in games.

“I’m pretty sure that AI will change almost everything we’ve been doing for years,” he said. “For the gaming industry and gamers, I am very optimistic about this. I see 2025 as the biggest year in the world of AI, and I would say that InZOI will be a milestone in gaming.

InZOI, a life simulation game, will launch in March. Lee said Crafton is also using artificial intelligence tools to speed up its creation.

Lee has thought in the past that intelligent NPCs would appear in games in 2024. But it looks like 2025 will be the big year for that.

“Some AI models are perfect. Whenever they make a small mistake, even with a one-in-a-million chance, someone will get hurt. But for gaming AI, our species will not be in danger. When these characters make mistakes, it’s It’s funny.” “They make some stupid jokes sometimes and say random things. But it’s fun.”