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Walt Disney Imagineering’s Robotic Character Olaf Makes Appearance at NVIDIA GTC
The future of character interactions just took a “cool” step forward. Walt Disney Imagineering’s self-walking, free-roaming Olaf robot made a surprise appearance at NVIDIA GTC, the world’s premier AI conference. Joining NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang on stage, the fan-favorite snowman showcased the incredible technological leaps Imagineers have made before he officially joins the “World of Frozen” at Disneyland Paris later this month.
Related – Learn to Draw with Olaf Coming to NEW Animation Academy
Kyle Laughlin, SVP of Research & Development at Walt Disney Imagineering, shared how the team utilized “deep reinforcement learning” to prepare Olaf for his guest-facing debut. Because Olaf is designed with “snowball feet” and moves in non-physical ways, teaching him to walk was a challenge—especially since his role in the “Celebration in Arendelle” show requires him to maintain his balance while performing on a boat in a lagoon.
Through the use of Disney Research’s “Kamino” simulator—a high-powered physics solver—Olaf was able to learn to stand and walk on unstable surfaces in a fraction of the time it would take a human. The simulator runs thousands of parallel environments at once, allowing robotic characters to “practice” and solve physical challenges before they ever step foot in a theme park.
This robotic platform is about more than just one snowman. Imagineering is using these tools to create a new generation of emotive and expressive characters. By significantly reducing the time it takes to develop and train these robots, Disney is paving the way for more “surprising” character encounters at parks and on cruise ships around the globe.
Guests can see Olaf in action for the first time when he debuts at Disneyland Paris on March 29, 2026.
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