A secret project revealed: Play “The Purring Test” and join the TED Games beta

We’ve been working on a secret project for the past year, and we couldn’t be more excited to finally share it with you. 

Games and puzzles have long been a part of TED’s identity in an unofficial way. We’ve presented thought leadership through TED Talks about games, built an award-winning TED-themed escape room in Marriott hotels around the world and created the TED-Ed riddle series of math and logic puzzles, which has been viewed more than 400 million times. 

Today we’re making it official by inviting you to participate in the TED Games beta.

TED Games shares TED’s guiding ethos that ideas matter. We’re aiming to deepen the experience for the many curious minds who come to TED through creative, joyful and novel play. Where a TED Talk can articulate an idea, a TED Game is designed to spark one.

We believe that:

• Games should be delightful, revelatory, inclusive and rewarding. TED Games are geared towards making your time more meaningful, not making it pass as quickly as possible. Our games will make you think in ways you may not have thought before. 
• Play engenders understanding of minds, perspectives and ideas that are different from our own.
• Critical thinking, deductive reasoning and building connections are essential skills for engaging with other people’s ideas and having ideas of your own. These and related cognitive processes are also closely related to what makes a game “smart.”

Our first game, The Purring Test, does all of the above. It started with the question, “What would it be like to play Pictionary with an AI?” Games like Pictionary are a fascinating exercise in attempting to understand other minds. So, what happens when that other “mind” is a synthetic one, prone to hallucinations and bizarre associations? The answer is something fun, absurd and often hilarious that we encourage you to experience for yourself. You’ll be able to compete against your friends and family with new puzzles every day.

Generative AI is an incredible technology, and it’s also a complicated, problematic one. This game is a way to put both the hype and fearmongering aside for a moment and just play with it. We hope that The Purring Test will lead players to curiosity and deeper understanding of AI’s black box nature, its potential and its limitations. For more information about how The Purring Test uses generative AI, the FAQ within the game contains a detailed explanation.

There are many more TED Games surprises in store that we won’t spoil just yet. We’re at the beginning of an exciting journey, and we’re thrilled you’re on it with us. We invite you to share your feedback through this short survey, as your input will help us make this initiative the best it can be.

Welcome to our community — it’s your turn to play.

For press inquiries please contact press@ted.com.