The latest installment in the “Call of Duty” video game franchise is taking a stand against cyberbullying and hate speech by introducing AI-powered hate speech detection that will moderate players’ voice chat.
Developed by Activision Blizzard, the publisher behind the game, the tool will detect “offensive language” in real time while players are in-game. The system is powered by machine learning and natural language understanding, allowing it to detect “the intent behind an insult.”
Once it detects inappropriate language, it will alert a moderator in the game who can take appropriate action, such as muting the player or issuing a warning. The tool will also be able to detect when a player is teaming up with another player to “troll” or harass others.
This is far from the first time that the “Call of Duty” franchise has tried to tackle the issue of online abuse. In the past, the game has implemented a “report abuse” system to let players flag each other for anything from inappropriate language to racism. However, those reports had to be manually reviewed by moderators, and it could be hours or days before a player was punished for their actions.
The new AI-powered system should drastically reduce the amount of time it takes to review and moderate player behavior, allowing moderators to take swift action if needed. As the technology improves, it should also become more accurate in detecting offensive language, meaning fewer innocent players will be caught in the moderation crossfire.
Activision Blizzard says it will continue to refine the system as it gets more data from players, ensuring that it catches more instances of online abuse while avoiding false positives. The company has also promised to be transparent about how its system works, so players know exactly when and why they might be flagged for inappropriate language.
For many players, online abuse has been a long-running issue with the “Call of Duty” franchise. With this latest move, the company is showing that it is serious about tackling the issue and ensuring that players of all ages can play the game without fear of facing online harassment.
