Associate Professor Andrey Somov from the Skoltech Center for Digital Engineering, who heads the Intelligent Sensing Group and co-founded the Smart Gaming scientific esports club, spoke at the Day of the Future Youth Forum as part of the Eastern Economic Forum.

During the session "Creating Worlds: How Science is Becoming a Driver of the Gaming Industry," the scientist explained that his team studies not the games, but the players themselves, using data analysis methods.

"We use a variety of mathematical methods, methods of machine and deep learning, and computer vision: We collect data not only from games but also physiological data (pulse, respiration, video, oculography, etc.). This allows them to solve a number of practical problems: assessing players' skill levels, player interaction within a team, ranking not only individual players but also teams, identifying cheaters, and evaluating gamer engagement within the game development industry."

Beyond these applications, medical uses are equally relevant. Andrey gave a specific example of the practical benefits of such research: At an esports tournament in the Moscow region, his team was able to identify a participant at risk of a panic attack by analyzing sensor data collected during the preparation for the competition. The participant confirmed this risk but had hidden it from the organizers due to an overwhelming desire to take part in the tournament.

To collect and analyze unique data, the team of scientists has set up its own computer club on the Skoltech campus, where scientific research and pilot testing of gaming product prototypes are conducted. This enables hypothesis testing and opens vast opportunities for the application of artificial intelligence in the industry.