A first-of-its-kind matchup of artificial intelligence (AI) will kickoff via the inaugural AI World Cup online soccer tournament this November at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology, the birthplace of the first Robot World Cup soccer series in 1996.

The online, simulated AI soccer series will include a five-on-five AI soccer match to be played after the machines use artificial intelligence technologies to self-learn the game in an online simulation environment.

The machines will undergo a month-long online practice period in October and compete in several preliminary matches from Nov. 1-24.  The intelligence will also need to provide commentary about online soccer videos and write articles on the event results.

In the finals, winning teams will be judged based on how they implemented AI technology.

The event is being organized by the Machine Intelligence and Robotics Multi-Sponsored Research and Education Platform of KAIST and is open to university students around South Korea. Event organizers expect it to attract online gamers specifically, and say they hope to expand to include international teams next year.

Professor Jong-Hwan Kim, the chair of the organizing committee of the AI World Cup, also hosted the first ever Robot World Cup 11 years ago. Over the past decade, his work has shifted from mechanical machines, such as robots, to the emerging field of AI.

Events such as the two World Cup series’ at KAIST are seen as a way for young engineers to develop and test next-generation robotic and artificially-intelligent technologies.