The Sandbox has always been about empowering anyone to become a creator. In service to this mission, we are exploring how we can use generative AI to empower creators to produce better experiences faster. Our goal is not to replace human creativity, but to enhance its potential through tools that can supercharge productivity and make simple tasks easier. On top of our current use of AI, we are announcing a partnership with Scenario to unlock more ways to create in the metaverse.
We believe the future of gaming is that any player can become a creator. Already over 75% of GenZ aspire to become a creator and we strive to offer #nocode tools that make creation more accessible than ever. To date, the feedback from our global community has been that it is simple but also fun to create with The Sandbox.
How can we further push this forward in 2023 and beyond? The recent development of AI and more specifically Generative AI based upon open models, are offering a path towards unlimited creativity, to the service of creators to produce faster, better experiences for the metaverse.
TL;DR
We have been experimenting with AI & Generative AI and believe it can help the metaverse better for everyone, essentially through the following:
- AI is already making the Metaverse safer and more fun to enjoy
- AI is already increasing self-expression via Emotes and body animations
- AI is helping creators bring their ideas to life faster, from days/weeks to seconds
- AI is making the Metaverse more inclusive and diverse
- AI will help populate the Metaverse, making it less empty and more lively
- The Sandbox will continue to explore further and bring these tools in the hands of everyone
What sets The Sandbox apart is that all this content will remain the creator’s property through the use of blockchain technology and true digital ownership, offering the right economic incentives to propel the Creators’ Economy to new heights.
Our current tools empower creators
Today, The Sandbox provides creators with tools that allow them to build immersive 3D experiences without the need for coding knowledge. The Game Maker and VoxEdit are free tools that allow anyone the possibility to build on a decentralized platform and access the opportunities true ownership provides.
We always try to improve these tools to empower as many people as possible and lower the barriers of entry into the metaverse. With this in mind, we are exploring the amazing possibilities AI brings to creation in order to go from ideation to asset production even faster. Below is a list of AI applications we are currently implementing, and other use cases we are developing for a roll-out in the near future.
AI is making the Metaverse safer
We are already using AI on a daily basis for moderation purposes. We’ve been working with GGWP that uses AI to reduce profanity and toxicity among players’ conversations inside the Metaverse, proving that AI technology is efficient at enhancing the user experience and ensuring everyone can have fun in a safer environment.
AI will improve self-expression through emotes and body animation
We are also currently working with Kinetix to enable more self-expression in the metaverse through AI technology. We previously interviewed Yassine Tahi in an episode of our Voices from the Metaverse series where he talked about their AI-based service to create realistic emotes animations for Avatars, reinforce self-expression and bring more life + immersion in virtual worlds. All in Web3, using NFTs to reward Creators.
AI will supercharge creativity
The Sandbox is a profoundly human-driven company. While we’re not ignoring the future potential for AI to assist in many tasks, we are driven by a creative vision that originates from the human spirit — and we plan to continue to be driven by human imagination and creativity.
In this aspect, AI can serve as a tool to empower humans more and make sure they can express themselves as freely and efficiently as possible. This means that AI can help humans develop their storytelling, assist in people communicating wherever they are in the world and whatever language they speak. This is already the case through our free creation tools, VoxEdit and Game Maker, which allows anyone to easily create assets and experiences in an intuitive manner, without the need for any coding skills.
AI can supercharge that even more, by allowing people to express what they want to create and have AI assist them in that creation. This new approach enables anyone to go from ideation to prototyping in a matter of minutes, rather than sometimes days or weeks, allowing them to embrace a more iterative approach to asset creation. Our creative teams are already using AI tools internally to better envision their concepts, get inspired, and get to the creation phase faster and with better visibility.
AI can make the Metaverse more inclusive and diverse
As Generative AI helps to design Avatars of various aesthetics, AI is the best way to embrace more inclusivity and vibrant diversity in all its forms. With 75% of GenZ aspiring to become a creator, AI will empower a new and diverse generation to express itself in more ways than could be imagined even just a few years ago. By accelerating the phase between ideation and asset creation, AI will foster a more diverse and more representative metaverse in terms of content and self-expression.
This will make the metaverse a more inclusive, diverse, and lively environment for everyone to enjoy and express their creativity.
What we are testing right now
Through a network of partnering projects, we are currently exploring the following AI-powered solutions, including:
- Text-to-Voxel asset: the user could enter a description of what the asset they envision and the asset is generated in 3D based on that description.
- 2D image-to-3D voxels asset: The AI could be fed 2D pictures to convert them to voxels
- Selfie-to-Avatar: The AI could recognize major facial features and reinterpret them into a voxelized avatar
- Text-to-scenery / architecture: similar to what is done with 2D already, we are looking to develop a tool that can take in a description and put together the level / scenery of the experience or game our builders want to create. This would be a natural extension of the accessible approach we provide with our no-code Game Maker
- Physical object Scan-to-3D object: The AI could recognize the nature of an object and create a voxelized version of it.
Introducing a new AI tool testing program with Scenario.com
We are pleased to announce our partnership with Scenario, a company developing AI tools specifically for text-to-visual generative asset creation in video games. Following a successful internal test phase where Game designers, Level Designers and Narrative Designers so a productivity increase for their concepts, and make them available now to as many Creators as possible.
As part of this partnership, we are opening an allow list for our creators to test out Scenario’s AI generators and their integration within The Sandbox to provide their feedback.
Register here for a chance to participate.
“Scenario is a fantastic tool to inspire Creators,” said Sebastien BORGET, COO & Co-Founder of The Sandbox. “We want to put AI in the hands of everyone so they can visualize new possibilities and exciting concepts that they will want to bring life on their virtual LANDS in the Metaverse”
“At Scenario, we’re dedicated to empowering creators to bring their artistic vision to life with the help of AI. Unlike broad AI models, working with Scenario ensures that the creative process is precise and intentional, eliminating lengthy or random experimentation. By providing creators with the best tools to fine-tune their creations and maintain consistent style, we can amplify the way we create experiences in the Metaverse. We’re excited to partner with The Sandbox and their community to push the boundaries of what’s possible in this exciting new frontier.” said Emmanuel de Maistre, Co-founder & CEO of Scenario.com
The Sandbox is dedicated to bringing the best tools for any aspiring creator to freely and seamlessly express themselves in the metaverse. The Sandbox will continue to explore new technologies and keep bringing these tools in the hands of everyone, in order to create a more diverse, more inclusive metaverse.
Stay tuned on our Medium and Twitter for more updates on AI integration within The Sandbox. We are excited to bring you more tools to make the metaverse a place of creation open to all.
Can AI empower creators in The Sandbox? was originally published in The Sandbox on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
