Wednesday, 1 March 2023

Sony Unleashes Experimental AI Driver in Gran Turismo 7

Sony recently released a big update for Gran Turismo 7, its flagship racing sim. The update to v1.29 includes support for PSVR2, new cars, and new tracks. There’s also an improved AI known as GT Sophy. This artificial driver won’t show up in standard races, but Sony is offering players the chance to challenge the advanced AI for a limited time in special events.

Gran Turismo 7 launched last year, and its driver AI was harshly criticized for being too predictable and limited. That might be fine for an arcade-style racer, but Gran Turismo is all about technical racing. GT Sohpy has learned that from all its training. Whereas a standard AI might take the earliest opportunity to pass another car, Sophy can choose the right moment to ensure it stays in the lead. It can also use techniques like drafting that the regular AI doesn’t really understand.

Sony set up an AI lab in 2020, and Sophy is one of its first major innovations. GT Sophy was the subject of a study published in Nature last year. The team behind the AI believes that racing sims are an excellent test bed for real-world AI problems. It requires continuous real-time control with complex rules and fast-changing conditions. As it races against more players, GT Sophy will improve its skills, but it’s already a speed demon. Some players who have no trouble outracing the game’s standard AI say that Sophy is unbeatable at higher difficulty tiers.

The AI driver was trained with reinforcement learning, which rewards the AI when it does something right. Over thousands of simulated races, the AI learns not only the rules of the game but the nuances of overtaking human players. Some of these same techniques could eventually aid in developing self-driving cars.

Gran Turismo 7 players who want to challenge GT Sphoy will have to use the new Race Together mode. You can challenge the AI in one of four different races, ranging from beginner to expert. GT Sophy has a different car for each race, and there’s a 1-on-1 mode where you can compete against the AI with an identical car.

There are no rewards for these races, and the mode is only available until March 31. Sony says GT Sophy is still in development, so it’s using this as a test run that will help direct future development efforts. Keep in mind, you can’t pick up Gran Turismo 7 tomorrow and start racing GT Sophy right away. The Race Together mode is only available to players who have reached Collector Level 6.

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