Krafton has made a significant impact at the International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML) 2026 by presenting 20 research papers, including a record-setting 10 in the main track. This achievement not only marks the highest number of main track acceptances by a South Korean game company but also places Krafton third globally among game studios. Held at COEX in Seoul, the conference highlights Krafton’s prowess in AI research and innovation.
The accepted papers delve into essential technologies for developing foundation models, covering topics such as world models, multimodal large language models (LLMs), preference learning, reasoning, and optimization. Notable research includes advancements in diffusion language models, performance analysis of AI preference learning methods, and improvements in LLM reasoning processes.
World models and AI agents are of particular interest, offering potential breakthroughs in creating virtual environments and interactive game agents. Krafton also co-hosted an “AI for Games” event with Odyssey, fostering dialogue between gaming and AI sectors. The event drew around 500 participants, including representatives from Sony AI, Microsoft Research, and Nvidia, discussing AI’s role in gaming, from agent cooperation to content automation.
Krafton’s impressive track record includes 85 accepted papers across top AI conferences like ICML, NeurIPS, and ICLR, showcasing a steady rise in research contributions. The company aims to integrate these findings into game technologies, strengthening the synergy between South Korea’s gaming industry and the global AI research community.
