Conversational AI Avatars in Unity 3D for Beginners

Learn about building conversational AI avatars in Unity 3D. Explore the technology, privacy, security and real-world uses, of connecting free avatars to the ChatGPT API and a local language model with LLMUnity.

How can a virtual character listen, respond and take part in a meaningful conversation? This beginner course introduces the building blocks of conversational AI avatars and shows how to combine them in Unity 3D for education, virtual assistance and training simulations, including virtual patients for emergency-response communication training.

This webinar introduces large language models (LLMs), prompts, conversation history, speech recognition, speech synthesis and avatar behaviour, following the flow from user input to an avatar response and comparing remote and local processing. Privacy and security run alongside: data leaving the device, recording and retention, API credentials, prompt injection, unreliable answers and the need for human oversight.

Target audience

For beginners from academia, industry and public administration interested in interactive AI.

This webinar is open and free of charge for all participants from academia, industry, and public administration from EU and/or EuroHPC JU member countries.

Entry level & prerequisites

Beginner – no prior AI, programming knowledge or model-training experience is required.

Speaker

Rodrigo Gutiérrez Maquilón (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology)

Rodrigo Gutiérrez Maquilón is a Human–Computer Interaction scientist at AIT Austrian Institute of Technology in Vienna and a doctoral researcher in HCI. His work explores conversational AI, ethical verbal interaction with machines and extended reality, including virtual patients and voice assistants for first-response training. He holds an MSc in Digital Media Informatics from the University of Bremen and HFK Bremen and a bachelor’s degree in Information Systems Engineering from UEES, Ecuador. Previously, he supported immersive-audio algorithm development and testing at Dolby. His background also spans teaching, interactive media installations, sound production and creative coding.

Location

This course is offered as LIVE ONLINE WEBINAR via Zoom.

Registration

Registration is required, the link to the registration form can be found on the top of this page in the menu on the left. Please register with your official institutional email address to prove your affiliation.

You will get the Zoom link in the automatic confirmation by email (subject starting with "[Indico] Registration"), please check your Spam/Junk folders). We will also send 1–2 reminders before the webinar.

Please do not hesitate to contact us at training@ai-at.eu if you have any questions.

Modification, withdrawal & no-show policy

Your registration is binding. Please only register for the course if you are really going to attend.

You can update your registration data or withdraw your registration anytime before the registration form has been closed via the link "Manage my registration" which you can find at the bottom of your automatic email confirmation (subject starting with "[Indico] Registration").

Alternatively, or after the registration form has been closed, please inform us about your cancelation or any change in your registration data (especially your mobile-phone number) via email (training@ai-at.eu).

No-show policy: If you do not cancel and do not show up at the course you will be blacklisted and excluded from future training events.

Organizers

This webinar is organized by AI Factory Austria AI:AT.

Acknowledgements

AI Factory Austria AI:AT has received funding from the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (JU) under grant agreement No 101253078. The JU receives support from the Horizon Europe Programm of the European Union and Austria (BMIMI / FFG).