Synthetic Agents as Full-fledged Teammates

Abstract

An important goal of training systems research is the ability to train teams to criterion while simultaneously minimizing training resources. One promising approach is to develop synthetic agents that act as full-fledged members of a team. Five experts will highlight successes, failures, and continuing challenges associated with the development, validation, and deployment of synthetic agents as full-fledged teammates. The panel will provide an intimate look “under the hood” of synthetic agents, describe what each has found useful for developing a synthetic teammate that “plays well with others,” and discuss the key roadblocks that must be overcome for the further inclusion of synthetic teammates within human training systems. The lessons learned from these panelists will be of value to those interested in cognitive engineering and human performance modeling.