Six SoarTech researchers have been awarded the 2023 Best Paper at the Florida Artificial Intelligence Research Society (FLAIRS) yearly conference. The paper, A Comparison of Behavior Cloning Methods in Developing Interactive Opposing-Force Agents, was co-authored by Logan Lebanoff, Ph.D. Nicholas Paul, Patrick Sherry, Gavin Carpenter, Chris Ballinger, Ph.D., and Charles Newton.

The winning paper outlines machine-learning approaches to mimic legacy computer-generated force behaviors (e.g. from OneSAF and other constructive simulations), in such a way they can be automatically extended and refined through continued learning through instruction or simulated self-play.

“SoarTech has been a pioneer in the design and development of intelligent computer-generated forces (CGFs) for DoD training since our founding in 1997,” said Brian Stensrud, Ph.D., director of simulation. “This paper represents years of research and development — sponsored by multiple organizations including Army STTC, ONR, AFRL, and DARPA — applying techniques such as transformers and large language models to improve the fidelity of CGFs and streamline how they are developed.”

“We see these and related approaches as critical to current and future DoD capabilities and programs including the Army’s Next Generation Constructive concept, USN’s Navy Continuous Training Environment (NCTE) and Next-Generation Threat System (NGTS), USMC’s Project Tripoli, and the USAF’s Joint Simulation Environment (JSE).”

FLAIRS was founded in 1987 to promote and advance artificial intelligence within the State of Florida, including interaction between researchers at the various colleges, universities, and industry.