On Thursday, Oct. 26, the World Languages & Digital Humanities Studio (J.B. Hunt Center 207) hosted a panel discussion on AI & Storytelling with featured panelists from local game studios in Northwest Arkansas.  

"AI & Storytelling" is the second installment of a three-part panel series of Digital Humanities Meet-Ups on Artificial Intelligence hosted by the World Languages & Digital Humanities Studio. The first installment, "AI & Society," took place on October 12. 

The "AI & Storytelling" panel consisted of three local game developers: Joe Payne, game designer and Web3 entrepreneur with Unlimited Game Studios; Stephanie Essin, narrative designer with Unlimited Game Studios; and Greg Rogers, creative director for Causeway Studios. Professor David Fredrick, associate professor of Classical Studies and Game Design, moderated the discussion. 

Thought-provoking discussion was sparked regarding the use of AI with world-building in videogames and how ChatGPT can assist with brainstorming alongside whether AI can replace human ideation or not. An interdisciplinary audience engaged with panelists directly during an extended Q&A session, addressing such topics as ethical approaches to including world cultures in game development and the potential of A.I. and gameplay to reframe traditional notions of intelligence.   

Stay tuned for the third and final installment of the Artificial Intelligence series — "AI in the Classroom" — set to take place on Nov. 30 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and featuring an interdisciplinary group of panelists who will draw from their in-class experiences with AI:

• Maggie Fernandes (English)  
• Ken Muessig (Global Campus) 
• Guillermo Pupo Pernet (Comp Lit and Cultural Studies) 
• Curtis Maughan (World Languages, Literatures & Cultures and Digital Humanities) 

See you Nov. 30!