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About This Webisode
SGT. STAR:
A Virtual Human with a Sense of Humor
Standing behind a "TranScreen," Sergeant Star looks you in the eye, shifting slightly on his feet. You are speaking to, he jokes "an incredibly handsome solider."
Well, sort of. Sgt. Star actually is a hologram-like projection, created by a team of graphics researchers, computer scientists and artificial intelligence experts here at the Institute for Creative Technologies in Los Angeles, California. He travels the country in Army Adventure vans, answering more than 145,000 questions a month.
When someone meets Sergeant Star, our goal is to really have them drop their disbelief, says Diane Piepol, project director. “We want them to feel immersed in that moment, just as they would if they met a real person.”
