PhD Position in Multimodal AI and Game Research

PhD Position in Multimodal AI and Game Research 100%

Online multiplayer games are living laboratories of human behaviour, where anonymity, competition and cooperation shape digital interactions. Join us to develop cutting‑edge multimodal AI to understand players’ social dynamics across games and communication channels.

School: School of Management and Law
Starting date: immediately or by mutual agreement. The position is offered on a fixed‑term basis, with annual contracts for a total duration of three years.

In the project MATCH‑IN‑GAMES (Multimodal Analysis of Team Communication and Human Behaviour in Online Competitive Games), we investigate how toxic behaviour and other social dynamics emerge in anonymous online multiplayer games. By combining multimodal artificial intelligence with game research, the project aims to better understand how gameplay, communication, and game design shape player behaviour across different games.

The focus of the doctoral project is the development of novel multimodal AI methods and pipelines to extract, integrate, and analyse gameplay, communication, and behavioural data from online multiplayer games. Your responsibilities will include:

• Developing multimodal AI pipelines to extract information from gameplay, chat, audio, video, and game telemetry & interaction data.
• Collecting, curating, and integrating multimodal datasets from public game APIs, gameplay recordings, and other research data sources.
• Applying and evaluating the developed quantitative methods to investigate toxic behaviour and other social dynamics, interpreting the results in the context of game research, including game design, mechanics, genre, and player communities.
• Publishing research results at leading international conferences and in high‑impact scientific journals.
• Presenting your work at international conferences, workshops, and meetings with project partners.
• Collaborating with researchers from AI and game studies at ZHAW, TUM, and other international partners.

Co‑supervising bachelor’s and master’s students working on related topics. The position is fully funded for three years through the DIZH Fellowship Programme, allowing the successful candidate to focus primarily on their doctoral research. The PhD project is conducted jointly by the Institute of Information Systems at ZHAW and the Technical University of Munich. The successful candidate will be employed at ZHAW and enrolled as a doctoral researcher at TUM.

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Computer Science, Data Science, Computational Sciences, Game Studies, Game Technology, Human–Computer Interaction, or a closely related discipline.
• A strong technical background in AI, machine learning, computer science, or data science, combined with an interest in game research / game development, or a background in game research with strong programming skills and a solid affinity for quantitative and computational methods.
• Strong programming skills and experience with software development for research or machine learning applications.
• Enthusiasm for interdisciplinary research at the intersection of AI, game research, and human behaviour.
• Excellent written and spoken English. Knowledge of German is an advantage but not required.

We would be pleased to receive your application by 30 August 2026.

We are committed to gender‑mixed and diverse teams in order to promote equality, diversity and innovation.