The Progression of AI-Powered Interactive Storytelling: From Ancient Myths to Local 70B Models

In the past decade, the realm of AI-powered role-playing (RP) has seen a dramatic transformation. What originated as fringe projects with early language models has grown into a thriving community of applications, services, and enthusiasts. This piece investigates the present state of AI RP, from popular platforms to innovative techniques.

The Growth of AI RP Platforms

Various services have come to prominence as favored focal points for AI-assisted storytelling and immersive storytelling. These allow users to engage in both conventional storytelling and more adult-oriented ERP (intimate character interactions) scenarios. Characters like Euryvale, or custom personalities like Poppy Porpoise have become popular choices.

Meanwhile, other platforms have grown in popularity for distributing and circulating "character cards" – ready-to-use digital personas that users can engage. The Backyard AI community has been particularly active in designing and distributing these cards.

Breakthroughs in Language Models

The rapid evolution of advanced AI systems (LLMs) has been a primary catalyst of AI RP's growth. Models like LLaMA-3 and the legendary "OmniLingua" (a hypothetical future model) highlight the increasing capabilities of AI in generating consistent and situationally appropriate responses.

AI personalization has become a vital technique for adapting these models to specific RP scenarios or character personalities. This process allows for more nuanced and reliable interactions.

The Drive for Privacy and Control

As AI RP has become more widespread, so too has the call for data privacy and individual oversight. This has led to the development of "user-owned language processors" and local hosting solutions. Various "LLM hosting" services have sprung up to meet this need.

Projects like Kobold AI and implementations of Llama.cpp have made it possible for users to run powerful language models on their own hardware. This "self-hosted model" approach resonates with those focused on data privacy or those who simply relish customizing AI systems.

Various tools have become widely adopted as accessible options for deploying local models, including impressive 70B parameter versions. These larger models, while computationally intensive, offer superior results for elaborate RP scenarios.

Exploring Limits and Investigating New Frontiers

The AI RP community is known for its creativity and determination to break new ground. Tools like Neural Path Optimization allow for precise manipulation over AI outputs, potentially leading to more dynamic and surprising characters.

Some users search for "unrestricted" or "obliterated" models, targeting maximum creative freedom. However, this sparks ongoing moral discussions within the community.

Specialized tools have appeared to cater to specific niches or provide novel approaches to AI interaction, often with a focus on "privacy-first" policies. Companies like recursal.ai and featherless.ai are among those exploring innovative approaches in this space.

The Future of AI RP

As we look to the future, several trends are becoming apparent:

Growing focus on local and private AI solutions
Advancement of more capable and efficient models (e.g., speculated LLaMA-3)
Research of innovative techniques like "eternal memory" for preserving long-term context
Combination of AI with other technologies (VR, voice synthesis) for more lifelike experiences
Personas like Poppy Porpoise hint at the possibility for AI to generate entire imaginary realms and expansive narratives.

The AI RP domain remains a hotbed of invention, with communities like Chaotic Soliloquy pushing the boundaries of what's achievable. As GPU website technology advances and techniques like neural compression improve efficiency, we can expect even more remarkable AI RP experiences in the not-so-distant tomorrow.

Whether you're a occasional storyteller or a passionate "quant" working on the next innovation in AI, the domain of AI-powered RP offers limitless potential for creativity and discovery.