The Next Stage of imma with NVIDIA Omniverse
The Potential of Virtual Humans in the AI Era
On June 18th, we announced our technology partnership with NVIDIA, receiving far more attention than we anticipated.
In this article, I'll share insights from a development manager's perspective on the story behind this partnership and the ongoing initiatives we are currently pursuing.
This piece delves into the widely discussed partnership with NVIDIA, offering a behind-the-scenes look that goes beyond the press release and providing a technical perspective on future prospects.
At the heart of this partnership lies a grand vision for the future of virtual humans. Our collaboration with NVIDIA began when we participated in COMPUTEX TAIPEI (*1) with our virtual talent, imma. This partnership symbolizes the fusion of NVIDIA's innovative technological prowess with Aww's expertise in virtual human development. By leveraging Omniverse (*2), we are filled with anticipation for the further evolution of virtual humans. Here, we discuss the details and future outlook, sharing the future we aim to achieve.
(*1) A computer-related trade show held in Taipei.
(*2) A modular development platform for building 3D applications and services provided by NVIDIA.
The Background and Reasons for Partnering with NVIDIA
Our partnership with NVIDIA began with a request to feature imma at COMPUTEX TAIPEI.
In fact, during NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang’s keynote, imma was showcased as one of the examples of utilizing Omniverse.
The background leading up to this partnership involved our initial use of Omniverse for driving imma, though we struggled to fully utilize the complex functions of Omniverse, such as optimizing parameters for Audio2Face (A2F) in facial animation.
On the other hand, NVIDIA was also progressing with Omniverse product improvements, and our partnership was formed on the basis of mutual benefits—improving Omniverse based on feedback from us as users and leading the virtual human industry by applying these advancements to imma.
Reactions Following the Partnership Announcement
The announcement of our partnership coincided with NVIDIA surpassing Apple to become the most valuable company globally by market capitalization, garnering significant attention. This news was covered by over 25 media outlets domestically and internationally, bringing widespread recognition to our efforts. As a result, we have seen increased opportunities for support and collaboration, further propelling our projects forward.
Our Future Collaborations with NVIDIA
Following the partnership, our development teams have been holding weekly meetings to discuss ways to improve facial animations using A2F.
Moving forward, we aim to accelerate virtual human development by collaborating with NVIDIA and utilizing Omniverse ACE (*3). Currently, we are focusing on facial animations, but we also plan to develop new services such as interactive AI, leveraging Omniverse's AI capabilities. This will enable us to further enhance the expressiveness and interactivity of virtual humans.
(*3) Omniverse ACE: A platform provided by NVIDIA for creating interactive AI avatars.
How Aww Will Approach AI
The strong affinity between virtual humans and AI needs no explanation.
At Aww, we are actively researching and developing autonomous conversational virtual humans. Specifically, we are working towards creating an experience where users can have conversations with imma that feel genuinely interactive.
When developing conversational virtual humans, two essential components are the brain, so to speak, and the system that enables human-like behavior.
We are independently developing the former, investing heavily in research and development focused on this aspect. The latter will be realized using Omniverse ACE, in collaboration with NVIDIA, to continuously update the experience.
Currently, our goal is to evolve imma, and by applying these advancements, we aim to realize autonomous conversational virtual humans with applications in fields such as education, news broadcasting, customer support, training, and corporate HR.
Our ultimate goal is to expand the potential of virtual humans through AI, providing new value to people's lives.
For job inquiries, media coverage, or interviews with our team, please contact us via the link below.
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https://aww.tokyo/