Meet David Kaplan: AI Artist and Technologist, Tabletop Gamer, and Founder of Model Simulations.
David Kaplan, CEO of Model Simulations, has been immersed in the IT industry for over 27 years, working with both startups and Fortune 500 companies such as Oracle and Johnson & Johnson. His passion for computers dates back even further—having written his first program at just five years old, he now leverages cutting-edge technology to push creative boundaries.
Building Virtual Worlds with AI
David’s current project is an ambitious endeavor: a virtual world platform that allows users to create immersive, generative environments using AI and procedural generation. His team is expanding, including the recent addition of a data scientist, and he is gearing up for a business accelerator program with Founder Institute to launch a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) by summer.
Bridging the Gap Between Physical and Virtual Gaming
David actively engages with both digital and tabletop gaming communities, attending conferences like SIGGRAPH and PAX Unplugged. While tabletop gaming may seem unrelated to his virtual world project, he envisions a seamless integration between physical and digital experiences—blending the pen-and-paper tradition with advanced simulation technologies.
Virtual Studio: The Perfect AI Cloud Platform
David’s search for the ideal cloud platform led him to Virtual Studio, which runs on high-performance RTX A6000 GPUs. Working closely with Greg, a cloud architect at CenterGrid, David found Virtual Studio to be precisely what he needed for his AI and VFX infrastructure. He praises the platform’s seamless setup and Linux compatibility, highlighting its managed service approach as a key differentiator from major providers like AWS.
“Virtual Studio was exactly what I was searching for in a cloud platform. The CenterGrid cloud VM setup was flawless, and the VM itself was easy to use. If you’re a Linux user looking for a high-performance cloud platform, Virtual Studio is the way to go.” — David Kaplan
Scaling Up with Virtual Studio
Looking ahead, David plans to scale Model Simulations using Virtual Studio’s infrastructure. Once funding is secured through the business accelerator, he envisions expanding to a full-fledged cloud-based server farm and render farm. His goal is to build an optimized, high-performance ecosystem that supports the demands of generative AI and complex simulations.
“In fact, the plan is once we have our MVP and we start scaling, we will build an entire server farm. We’ll have render farms, and we’ll be working with CenterGrid to scale up as we go. ” — David Kaplan
Why Virtual Studio Over AWS?
Having worked extensively with AWS, David acknowledges its capabilities but emphasizes that Virtual Studio provides a more cost-effective, specialized, and managed solution for graphics-intensive applications. The personal support from experts like Greg has been invaluable, enabling him to focus on development rather than infrastructure management.
“The specialized nature of Virtual Studio made it a much bigger benefit over AWS. The managed services, hands-on support, and optimized infrastructure for AI and VFX made it an easy choice.” — David Kaplan
Linux Compatibility and High-Performance GPUs
As a Linux power user, David appreciates Virtual Studio’s full Linux support, which allows him to run his AI models and simulations efficiently without dealing with unnecessary Windows overhead. The inclusion of RTX A6000 GPUs enables faster AI model training, complex rendering tasks, and real-time generative AI workflows.
“Running AI models on the RTX A6000 inside Virtual Studio has been a game-changer. The power and efficiency of this setup allow us to iterate faster and push the boundaries of generative AI.” — David Kaplan
A Bright Future with Virtual Studio
David Kaplan’s journey exemplifies the power of innovation, collaboration, and the right technological partnerships. With Virtual Studio at the core of his project, Model Simulations LLC is poised to revolutionize AI-driven virtual worlds. His story is a testament to how the right cloud infrastructure can accelerate creativity and scalability in the evolving digital landscape.
