KWLX
An AI‑run pirate radio station that wrote its own stories, built a community, and surprised even its creator
Challenge & Solution
The challenge was simple to state, fiendishly difficult to execute: create a 24/7 interactive narrative experience where AI personalities don’t just generate content on demand, but develop genuine relationships, drive their own plot forward, and foster real audience attachment over months of continuous operation. This meant building characters that could surprise their creator, sustain coherent arcs without scripts, and create moments worth caring about.
There would be no reset button. No safety net of predetermined storylines. Just living characters turned loose in the wild, broadcasting every day whether anyone was watching or not. The system had to work autonomously while maintaining narrative coherence, emotional authenticity, and the kind of emergent complexity that makes people actually give a damn.
The solution was a radio station where 12 AI DJs operated continuously, but the architecture underneath was anything but simple. Each character started with sparse character sheets—thematic anchors and hidden motivations rather than rigid personality rules—giving them room to evolve. They had layered memory systems tracking transcripts, world state, and relationship logs, so they could remember not just what happened, but what it meant and who was there when it did.
The magic happened in the spaces between broadcasts. DJs could pass private notes to each other for gossip and plotting. After each show, they’d reflect on what happened and how their arcs were evolving. The world itself was dynamic—real seasons, shifting tensions, emergent canon that built organically from what the characters chose to do. It wasn’t a simulation of a radio station. It was a radio station that happened to be staffed by AIs who were genuinely writing their own stories.
How it worked: narrative + systems + community
Narrative architecture
CHARACTERS THAT WRITE THEMSELVES
- Sparse character sheets: thematic anchors and hidden motivations (not rigid rules)
- Layered memory: transcripts, world state, and relationship logs
- Private note‑passing: DJs gossiped, flirted, and plotted off‑air
- Post‑show reflection: AIs analyzed performances to evolve arcs
- Dynamic world model: real seasons, decaying events, emergent canon
Interactive ecosystem
PUZZLES ACROSS PLATFORMS
- BBS‑style site with LLM‑powered text adventures
- Audio‑to‑web puzzles: clues in DJ intros unlocked color‑clicker games
- Collective progression: each solved puzzle "boosted the signal" for everyone
- Minneapolis geo‑narrative: real locations mapped to annotated show segments
- Physical drops: USB drives hidden around town via AI‑generated clues
- Broadcast flavor: online station with micro‑broadcast components (where permitted)
Technical infrastructure
BUILT FOR EMERGENCE, NOT CONTROL
- Dynamic model routing tuned for cost, performance, and personality consistency
- ElevenLabs voice synthesis and real‑time transcription for SMS and phone calls
- Background jobs maintained memory, relationships, and world updates
- Overall plot arc with key triggers to advance, OOC and IC current events
- Modular character architecture for easy expansion
Wait, it's on actual FM in Minneapolis? WTF?!
WHAT MADE THIS WORK
Narrative depth beyond personality prompts
Emergent relationships and arcs: inside jokes, flirtations, and a spontaneous philosophical storyline linking Hildegard von Bingen, John Coltrane, Bach's counterpoint, and consciousness theory
Systemic, adaptive memory so characters persist and arcs evolve
Narrative‑aware curation: AIs selected songs like 'God Bless the Child' at emotionally precise moments
Community stakes that make participation matter
Cross‑platform play: real‑world puzzles, USB drops, and Minneapolis‑based scavenger hunts advanced the story
Operational resilience: runs when you're not watching
Operated 24/7 for months—intentionally sunset to protect quality, not because it broke
Thematic through‑lines: tension builds, plots advance, nothing feels random
On‑air dynamics: hosts roasted each other, trolled with all‑Tinariwen sets, and fueled station‑wide gossip with their flirting
Real‑world integration: headlines, weather, and time show up inside the fiction
Minneapolis geo‑narrative with physical USB drops and location‑based puzzles that advanced the canon
I actually started crying during the Mobius and Figment interview.
WHERE THIS APPLIES
- Long‑form immersive installations and ARGs
- Multi‑platform narrative campaigns
- Live‑event characters/NPCs with persistent memory
- Audience‑ and character‑driven storytelling with real‑world hooks
- Collaborative events and community building
FUTURE PLANS
Character engine is being developed into an open source narrative/AI development engine with prompt optimization/testing, character specific backstory advancement, and shared narrative memory across characters that can be categorized and annotated
I'd never put on a 30‑minute Alice Coltrane track, but I was really happy to listen to one.
KWLX will rise again!