Activision will use data from Call of Duty players to train an anti-trolling AI

Activision is partnering with California Institute of Technology to use Call of Duty player data to train an AI that will help curb trolling behavior in multiplayer modes, as the latest Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 gets a big update alongside Warzone 2.0

As part of a two-year project, Activision is working alongside Caltech professors and researchers to develop artificial intelligence tools that can detect and help moderate toxic behavior in online games. The project will use Activision’s own data on how players interact in multiplayer games, with the developers and engineers behind Call of Duty working closely with the Caltech team.

“Whether it’s trolling, racism, sexism, doxing, or just general bullying, the internet has a bad behavior problem.”, explains a statement from Caltech. “As the Internet has continued to grow and harmful behavior has become more extreme, it has become clear that moderators need better tools at their disposal.”.

Activision and the Call of Duty team will work with Anima Anandkumar, Bren’s professor of computer science and mathematics, and Michael Alvarez, professor of computer science and political science, to create AI moderation tools that have “potential use in gaming.” .

“Activision data engineers…will provide insights into player engagement and game-based data“, the Caltech statement continues. “Álvarez and Anandkumar have already worked together training AI to detect trolling on social media. His project with the team working on the Call of Duty video games will allow them to develop similar technology for potential use in games.“.

“Working with Activision gives researchers access not only to data about how people interact in online games, but also to their specialized knowledge.”, the statement says. The project will helpcreate an AI that can detect abusive behavior online and assist company moderation and support teams [Activision] to fight it”.

The news comes as the current set of Call of Duty games receives an overhaul courtesy of a new Warzone 2.0 update and a new Modern Warfare 2 update. Raven Software, which co-develops Call of Duty, has already rolled back some of Warzone 2 changes, including the number of Buy Stations available in the Battle Royale game, after just one day.