Google DeepMind partners with EVE Online studio to build AI that can think decades ahead

Google DeepMind just turned one of gaming’s most notoriously complex universes into a petri dish for artificial intelligence. The AI research lab announced a partnership with Fenris Creations, the rebranded studio behind the sprawling space MMORPG EVE Online, acquiring a minority stake in the company as part of a deal that positions the game’s two-decade-old virtual economy as a training ground for next-generation AI systems. The partnership arrived alongside Fenris Creations’ management buyout from Pearl Abyss, a transaction valued at $120 million. For DeepMind, the investment buys access to a persistent, player-driven universe spanning more than 7,000 star systems, where the data has been accumulating for over 20 years. Why EVE Online is the perfect AI sandbox The research will focus on deploying AI models within an offline version of EVE Online running on local servers, a controlled environment where researchers can study how AI handles long-horizon planning, memory, and continual learning. DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis framed gaming as a natural proving ground for AI research, pointing to the lab’s track record. AlphaGo defeated the world champion in Go back in 2016. AlphaStar re...