Google DeepMind Takes a Minority Stake in CCP Games for AI Training

Google has purchased a minority stake in CCP Games, the developer behind the long-running space simulation Eve Online, as part of a partnership that gives DeepMind access to the game’s complex social systems for AI training. The deal, reported by Bloomberg, involves an investment in the millions of dollars, according to Fenris Creations CEO Hilmar Veigar Pétursson. CCP Games has been rebranded as Fenris Creations after buying back the rights to Eve Online from Korean publisher Pearl Abyss.

DeepMind plans to study player behavior on isolated servers, focusing on challenges like long-term planning and continuous learning—skills the AI has not yet mastered. Eve Online, now over 20 years old, offers players an unusual degree of freedom in navigating its universe, making it a rich source of simulation data. “We jokingly say that the final boss for AI in games would obviously be Eve Online,” Pétursson said. “Eve is giving insights about our own society and the human condition.”

The companies promise the collaboration will explore new gameplay experiences, though details remain vague. DeepMind has previously trained on games from arcade classics to StarCraft II. Meanwhile, Fenris Creations is developing several Eve Online titles, including the upcoming FPS spinoff Eve Vanguard and the recently launched mobile game Eve Galaxy Conquest. A blockchain-based spinoff, formerly Project Awakening and now called Eve Frontier, is also in the works, though its prospects remain uncertain.

Source: Engadget