# Towards Embedding Dynamic Personas in Interactive Robots: Masquerading Animated Social Kinematics (MASK)

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2403.10041 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.10041/

## Key facts

- Cited by 3 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 7 of its 27 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 15 Mar 2024.

## Builds on (most cited first, 7 of 7)

- [GPT-4 Technical Report](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2303.08774/) (2023)
- [Character-LLM: A Trainable Agent for Role-Playing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.10158/) (2023)
- [Personality Traits in Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.00184/) (2023)
- [ALOHA: Artificial Learning of Human Attributes for Dialogue Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1910.08293/) (2019)
- [Developing Social Robots with Empathetic Non-Verbal Cues Using Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.16529/) (2023)
- [Come Closer: The Effects of Robot Personality on Human Proxemics Behaviours](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.02979/) (2023)
- [Nonverbal Social Behavior Generation for Social Robots Using End-to-End Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2211.00930/) (2022)

## Built on by (most cited first, 3 of 3)

- [SALM: A Multi-Agent Framework for Language Model-Driven Social Network Simulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.09081/) (2025)
- [The Robot's Inner Critic: Self-Refinement of Social Behaviors through VLM-based Replanning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.20164/) (2026)
- [USS: Unifying Spatial-Semantic Prompting for End to End Embodied Visual Tracking](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.25880/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

This paper presents the design and development of an innovative interactive robotic system to enhance audience engagement using character-like personas. Built upon the foundations of persona-driven dialog agents, this work extends the agent's application to the physical realm, employing robots to provide a more captivating and interactive experience. The proposed system, named the Masquerading Animated Social Kinematic (MASK), leverages an anthropomorphic robot which interacts with guests using non-verbal interactions, including facial expressions and gestures. A behavior generation system based upon a finite-state machine structure effectively conditions robotic behavior to convey distinct personas. The MASK framework integrates a perception engine, a behavior selection engine, and a comprehensive action library to enable real-time, dynamic interactions with minimal human intervention in behavior design. Throughout the user subject studies, we examined whether the users could recognize the intended character in both personality- and film-character-based persona conditions. We conclude by discussing the role of personas in interactive agents and the factors to consider for creating an engaging user experience.