Candy Crushcreator King has recently acquired artificial intelligence software company Peltarion, based in Sweden, as it seeks to grow the company’s capabilities and teams in game AI and machine learning and increase the usage of AI in its game platform.
The ‘no-code machine learning operations platform’ Peltarion was founded in 2004 by Luka Crnkovic-Friis and Måns Essén in Sweden. Crnkovic-Friis and Essén will take on managerial roles at King, with a focus on improving the company’s AI technologies and growing Sweden’s AI community.
In line with the company’s strategic developments in these fields, the main goal is to become a ‘game AI hub’ in the gaming industry, according to a statement from the company.
A playful world
Tjodolf Sommestad, president of King, said: “We are proud to announce the acquisition of Peltarion. Machine learning technology is moving quickly, and by increasing our investments in this field, we expect to deliver even more creative content to our 250 million monthly players* (Q1 2022) across the globe.
“We believe the talented Peltarion team, together with the powerful technology they have built, will help us serve our players even more effectively with more engaging games and content. This is yet another step towards our mission of making the world playful.”
Luka Crnkovic-Friis, Peltarion CEO, added: “This is a monumental chapter in Peltarion history. We are excited to be part of a big AI success story in the Nordics, especially with Stockholm at its base. We are impressed with King for being one of the most successful Swedish tech companies and mobile game developers of modern time.”
“The scale and reach of King, with iconic franchises like Candy Crush Saga, is a great match for our technology. The opportunities with AI seem to be endless, and we cannot wait to unlock the potential of working together.”
King’s Diversity Space Tool, a suite that quantified diverse characteristics within its in-game casts of characters in an effort to combat unconscious bias, was recently heavily criticised after its use in Activision Blizzard franchises including Call of Duty and Overwatch 2.
