'World models' are AI's latest sensation: what are they and what can they do?
World models are a new type of AI tool that are trained on real-world data to improve their capabilities in various technologies, including robotics. These models can create interactive and explorable environments, enhancing user experience compared to traditional generative AI. Major companies like Google and Nvidia are investing heavily in the development of these systems, which could revolutionize AI applications in research and industry.
- ▪World models are trained on data about physical environments to enhance AI capabilities.
- ▪They provide interactive experiences that allow users to explore virtual environments in real time.
- ▪Major technology firms and start-ups are investing significantly in the development of world models.
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NEWS EXPLAINER 28 April 2026 ‘World models’ are AI’s latest sensation: what are they and what can they do? Training AI world models on data about physical environments could improve their real-world capabilities in technologies such as robotics. By Davide Castelvecchi Davide Castelvecchi View author publications Search author on: PubMed Google Scholar Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Nvidia’s Cosmos is one world model being trained on physics data about real-world environments.Credit: NVIDIA CorporationAn ongoing trend in artificial intelligence could have huge implications for how the technology is used in research.Machine-learning systems such as large language models (LLMs), which turn prompts into text, images and video, are becoming increasingly sophisticated and…
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