Researchers train AI to design Lego structures, brick by brick, testing each for real-word stability, using physics simulations. The result is surprisingly sturdy.
If you could have anything built in Lego, what would it be?
Well, this no longer needs to be a hypothetical question, as researchers have developed a LegoGPT model that combines all the possibilities, block by block, in a dynamic test program.
Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, effectively repurposed and road-tested a Meta artificial intelligence (AI) model, to predict the next plausible brick in the sequence.
Each design goes through a physics simulation to verify stability. If a brick causes a model to collapse – sounds a bit like Jenga – the system backtracks and tries a new approach, effectively called a “rollback.”
And, thanks to these rollbacks, there’s an impressive 98.8% success rate, compared to if the GPT just went gung-ho and jumped at the first possible solution, with a success rate of only 24%.
Block by block success
To teach LegoGPT how to construct stable models, the team generated a dataset of over 47,000 Lego structures.
Each one was paired with a caption and rigorously tested for physical stability, ensuring that the AI could reliably build designs that wouldn’t collapse in real life.
When I set it to number-crunching to build me “a bottle in a basket,” I was positioned 56th in the queue – far more satisfying than waiting at the bank – and it slowly began to get to work.
My first thought when I learned about LegoGPT was that it was “eye-candy,” but on further investigation, I realized it was anything but.
While I was terrible at building anything with my hands at school, I imagine it would fare a lot better with passionate Lego fans and could encourage positive teamwork.
Simpler is smarter
The educational value today would be striking if students were able to collaborate in alliances of logic and spatial reasoning, trial-and-error programming, and team-based techniques.
Minimalism is what it boils down to here – the layout of LegoGPT, coupled with the builds themselves, uses deliberate simplicity that is both retro and manageable.
The built-in constraints help keep the project focused – it only works with 8 brick types, 21 object categories, and a 20 x 20 x 20 cm space for now.
Currently, as a cool demo, you cannot specify a color or texture, and the blocks remain undyed – but should it advance in sophistication, it could evolve into a powerful design tool.
What sets it apart from other “AI does a thing” tools is that it can ride on the reputation of Lego.
There’s a saturation of the market at the moment with AI Minecraft agents and such, but the researchers behind LegoGPT have a strong physics pedigree.
Hopefully, with a broader brick selection, a more colorful setup, and more industry crossover with fields such as architecture and design, LegoGPT could really stack up as more than just a novelty.
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