AI for Good Global Dialogue on esports: How AI blurs the line between traditional and virtual sports
On July 23rd, 2020, AI for Good Global Summit hosted part two of its global dialogue on esports, exploring the evolution of AI and its impact on both esports and the future.
A panel composed of influencers from around the world who have been impacted by esports or AI in some way participated in the conversation. BBC News 鈥淐lick鈥 presenter and inventor LJ Rich moderated the dialogue between panel members including International Sports Broadcasting (ISB) director Ursula Romero, Singapore Esports Association president Chong Geng Ng, Autonomous Drivers Alliance (ADA) founder Bryn Balcombe, OverActive Media President & CEO Chris Overholt, and Professor Andy Miah from the University of Salford.
The discussion was divided into three major topics: how esports and AI interact, the interplay between humans and AI, and the social good applications that can be found from these interactions.
Introducing the first topic with a commercial for Roborace, a new type of motorsport where autonomous vehicles race electrically powered vehicles, LJ Rich noted how 鈥淎I blurs lines between the real and the virtual and traditional [sports] and esports鈥, the interaction of AI and esports allowing the originally separate competitions of traditional sports and esports to merge into one. ADA founder Bryn Balcombe emphasized that the convergence of entertainment, tech development, and sports is only possible due to 鈥渢he GPU tech, gaming tech鈥 that power these projects, technology enabling broader inclusivity and innovation.
鈥淭ech pushes us to think more carefully about what our contribution to the world can be in partnership with machines鈥 said Andy Miah when discussing how Google鈥檚 DeepMind StarCraft player Alpha Star defeated some of the best StarCraft players around. The event showed players that there are even more ways to play the game despite the years of practice that has gone into it, thus pushing them further. For Miah, 鈥渋t鈥檚 that competition and the recognition that game playing is a catalyst for innovation that鈥檚 really the most exciting aspect of this.鈥
Chong Geng Ng continued the conversation of innovation with the advancements of volumetric capture in film and gaming, noting how 鈥淎I will reduce the resource requirements of [the] development of virtual environments鈥 thus possibly allowing everyone to build their own virtual worlds and share them with others. While volumetric capture is still an expensive process at the moment, VR and AR technologies continue to push entertainment in that direction by allowing players to enter virtual worlds from the comfort of home.
鈥淎 lot of what we are talking about today has the potential of changing the way we around the world enjoy sports鈥 emphasized Chris Overholt as the panelist discussed recent innovations to the world of sports such as the London 2012 gymnastics鈥 360 matrix which allowed viewers to see the sport from a variety of angles, as well as CBS鈥檚 immersive experience which let viewers attend the Final Four. 鈥淭he notion of creating a virtual stadium for those around the world to be able to attend and enjoy and experience鈥 has incredible potential,鈥 Chris continued, the combination of esports, AI, and advancing technology opening up the possibility for millions to attend events like the Olympics virtually.
While AI and esports have great potential, concerns about the stigmas around gaming and AI were discussed by panelists, specifically how both can be used to create harmful experiences. 鈥淎I is a wonderful and powerful tool, but can be used for twisted purposes. We need to safeguard against the worst of it while at the same time encourage the best of it鈥 suggest Chong Cheng Ng. The reputation of esports and gaming was also noted as mixed, but panelists hope that by explaining the benefits of esports and showing specifically how computer programming and technology are both creative and collaborative processes that go beyond just one profession that wider populations will start to see the benefits of these activities.
Focusing on sports, LJ Rich noted the possibility of 鈥淎I Doping鈥, a topic that Ursula Romero confirmed as a possible issue in any kind of sport, using the example of cyclists receiving information from a headset as a known situation. 鈥淚t's similar. You know, like,鈥ow far can we take it鈥 we're in a competition and they will get help from AI鈥 to know where they're going to take the next step, or to make the next move鈥. It鈥檚 super interesting.鈥
Andy Miah concluded the topic by suggesting that the merge taking place will create a completely different sport when taking into account the opportunities for audience participation, describing the possibility for 鈥渇an boost鈥 interactions in a car race where the driver with the loudest audience cheers gets a physical boost in speed. Overall, there are many factors that industry leaders will have to take into account.
In terms of social good, the panelists discussed multiple ways in which the combination of AI and esports can create a better future. Andy Miah noted that with evolution of AI based systems to monitor the health of players such as injuries, stress, sleep, and so forth, that the whole scale health management systems created for esports can be brought to wider populations. 鈥渆sports integration is a catalyst for a whole range of public health solutions that are desperately needed in places where there鈥檚 limited infrastructure and ways of addressing major health problems,鈥 Miah said, the innovations in the world of gaming expandable to benefit beyond esports.
Other panelists noted that the changes happening offer people ways to personalize the way they interact with sports to suit their personal interests and needs and that the advancements in AI and technology can 鈥渓evel the playing ground between devices.鈥 The community and economic interactions of the Olympics was also noted as beneficial in terms of slowly making these technologies more accessible.
鈥淚f you ever have something like 5G or things of that sort, what it implies is that the cost of computing power dropped significantly because you no longer need a computer in your house, you can actually run things off the cloud. And that means that you can literally be playing really complicated esports or even this new AR/VR related esports on your phone鈥 Chong Cheng Ng said, emphasizing that monetary costs are currently the largest barrier. 鈥淟ot is possible now, it鈥檚 just too expensive. Ai shall reduce the cost. All of these things are closer than we expect.鈥
Part three of the AI for Good Global Summit dialogue on esports is planned to be streamed on September 3rd with a focus on gaming and esports in the context of developing countries! To review the first dialogue about esports, check out our article here!
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