KRAFTON Appoints Kangwook Lee as Chief AI Officer

PNN
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], February 23: KRAFTON, Inc. has announced the appointment of Kangwook Lee, Head of KRAFTON AI, as Chief AI Officer (CAIO), a newly established executive role designed to oversee the company's AI R&D and mid-to-long-term innovation strategy.
* Established CAIO role to advance game AI R&D and strengthen mid-to-long-term innovation strategy.
- Appointed Kangwook Lee, former Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison to advance KRAFTON's game AI and mid-to-long-term physical AI research
The appointment was made in recognition of Lee's extensive AI expertise, leadership, and accumulated research achievements gained from years of AI technology R&D and project execution experience.
Lee received his PhD in 2016 from the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department at UC Berkeley and previously served as an Associate Professor with Tenure in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has conducted research across AI fields such as deep learning and machine learning and concurrently served as Head of KRAFTON AI since 2022, spanning both academic and industry work. He has focused on reshaping KRAFTON's AI research framework to enhance the company's innovation capabilities, leading R&D in key AI domains such as machine learning (ML), language models (LM), natural language processing (NLP), reinforcement learning (RL), and multimodal models. Lee has earned recognition for his research with a total of 57 authored papers accepted at leading global AI conferences including NeurIPS, ICML, and ICLR.
Moreover, Lee has demonstrated proven success in leading major projects. In 2025, Lee spearheaded a project at KRAFTON in collaboration with NVIDIA to introduce CPCs (Co-Playable Characters), opening new possibilities for gameplay by enabling real-time interaction between players and AI. Lee also directed key innovation development at KRAFTON as part of the proprietary AI foundation model project starting last year. Recently, Lee resigned his tenured position at the University of Wisconsin-Madison to dedicate himself to KRAFTON's AI R&D and mid-to-long-term innovation strategy. Centered on advancing game AI R&D, Lee will drive technology expansion at KRAFTON and explore future areas such as physical AI.
By appointing Lee as CAIO, KRAFTON plans to further enhance its game AI R&D framework and strengthen its mid-to-long-term business strategy built on foundational technologies. The company will also continue to refine AI as a tool that amplifies developer creativity in service of enhanced gameplay, with the singular aim of delivering better experiences for players.
Under this direction, KRAFTON's AI strategy will be operated across three pillars:
1) Elevating Gameplay
2) Enhancing Operational Efficiency
3) Securing New Growth Drivers
Elevating Gameplay
KRAFTON will elevate gameplay by deploying AI features that are meaningfully applicable to games, such as CPCs designed to improve the quality of AI-driven interactive content. KRAFTON will continue to establish a common foundation by strengthening core AI technologies that can directly enhance immersion and player experience. Building on this foundation, each of KRAFTON's studios retain ownership of their creative processes and the tools they choose to use according to the needs of their respective projects.
Enhancing Operational Efficiency
KRAFTON will help streamline workflows and reduce repetitive technical tasks, enabling teams to focus on creative planning, problem-solving, and craft. In the production stage, KRAFTON will enhance tools for data analysis and development, while improving service quality and stability based on authorized player data during the operations stage. By removing operational friction, KRAFTON aims to systematically support and empower creative human work by providing a safe, efficient development environment.
Securing New Growth Drivers
Building on its foundational AI capabilities and strengths as a game company, KRAFTON will continue to conduct research in physical AI and robotics. The research will be carried out through a separate entity that is currently being established--Ludo Robotics--with a parent company in the U.S. and a subsidiary in Korea. The Korean subsidiary will be led by CAIO Kangwook Lee. With years of operating complex, large-scale game worlds and player interaction data accumulated through game development and service, KRAFTON holds a meaningful advantage in physical AI and robotics research. In particular, the company is focusing on long-term opportunities centered on software for robotic intelligence, as it is well-positioned to validate simulations, especially those difficult to test in the real world, in a virtual game environment.
CAIO Kangwook Lee emphasized, "KRAFTON uses AI as a tool to amplify human imagination and creativity, not replace it," adding, "Rooted in our core gaming business, KRAFTON will continue to explore futurepossibilities backed by AI innovation and data for long-term growth and player value."
CAIO Kangwook Lee Bio
Kangwook Lee is the CAIO of KRAFTON, overseeing the company's entire AI R&D efforts, including AI for next-generation video games and AI for game development. Previously, he was an Associate Professor with Tenure in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department and the Computer Sciences Department (by courtesy) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He received his PhD in 2016 from the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department at UC Berkeley. He is the recipient of the NSF CAREER Award, Amazon Research Award, the KSEA Young Investigator Grant Award and multiple best papers awards including the IEEE Joint Communications Society/Information Theory Society Paper Award. His professional service includes serving as Area Chair for NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, and COLM, on the Program Committee for MLSys, and as an Action Editor for Transactions on Machine Learning Research.
About KRAFTON, Inc.
Headquartered in Korea, KRAFTON, Inc. is dedicated to discovering and publishing captivating games that offer fun and unique experiences. Established in 2007, KRAFTON is built on a global network of 19 creative studios that include PUBG STUDIOS, Striking Distance Studios, Unknown Worlds, Neon Giant, KRAFTON Montreal Studio, Bluehole Studio, RisingWings, 5minlab, Dreamotion, ReLU Games, Flyway Games, Tango Gameworks, inZOI Studio, JOFSOFT, Eleventh Hour Games, OmniCraft Labs, Olivetree Games, Loonshot Games, and 9B STUDIO. Each independent studio strives to continuously take on new challenges and leverage innovative technologies. Their goal is to win over more fans by broadening KRAFTON's platforms and services.
KRAFTON is responsible for premier game IPs, including PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS, PUBG MOBILE, PUBG: BLINDSPOT, inZOI, Subnautica, MIMESIS, Hi-Fi Rush, Dinkum, TERA, My Little Puppy, and more. With a passionate and driven team across the globe, KRAFTON is a tech-forward company with world-class development capabilities, continuously exploring new possibilities that enhance the gameplay experience -- including AI and other emerging technologies. For more information, visit www.krafton.com.
About KRAFTON India
In India, KRAFTON is responsible for premier mobile games, including BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE INDIA (BGMI), which has surpassed 250 million downloads, Bullet Echo India, Road To Valor: Empires, and CookieRun India, among others. Committed to enhancing the start-up ecosystem in India, KRAFTON has invested over $200 million in several Indian startups across interactive entertainment, gaming, Esports, and technology, since 2021. KRAFTON actively supports India's game development ecosystem through its KRAFTON India Gaming Incubator.
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