Alibaba's Happy Oyster AI model enables extended virtual world creation, following World Labs' Spark 2.0 release

Alibaba has launched the Happy Oyster AI model, capable of generating virtual worlds through real-time creation. This model produces video clips lasting up to three minutes, a significant extension beyond conventional AI tools that typically create shorter segments. Happy Oyster operates with two distinct modes: a directing mode that constructs worlds from text and image prompts, and a wandering mode for exploration. The model continuously responds to instructions during generation, moving away from the one-shot AI paradigm. This release follows the unveiling of Spark 2.0 by World Labs, co-founded by AI researcher Li Fei-Fei. Spark 2.0 is an open-source 3D Gaussian splatting rendering engine designed to enable detailed 3D image viewing on less powerful devices like smartphones. World Labs, based in San Francisco, was established in early 2024. Li Fei-Fei, often referred to as an AI 'godmother,' is a professor at Stanford University. The development highlights competition among Chinese tech giants in advancing world model technologies.