Artificial Intelligence has made incredible progress in the last few years, it almost seems like we're hearing about new AI innovations and use cases every other week.
As more and more technology includes AI, it becomes clear that we are approaching a new era: one where Artificial Intelligence will compete with human intelligence.
Entrepreneur and "real-life ironman" Elon Musk has always been very clear about the enormous potential of AI, and that it could even become a threat to humanity if it's not controlled in the right way.
That's why he has founded the nonprofit startup "OpenAI", that aims to turn AI into something positive and prevent its dangers.
This week, an AI bot from OpenAI managed to show off some incredible technological progress and gained a lot of media attention:
The Artificial Intelligence Bot managed to beat one of the world's best players in the highly competitive battle game Dota 2 in a 1-on-1 match.
The Tournament
The bot by OpenAI demonstrated its skills at the annual live tournament "The International" this past weekend.
It was up against a crowd favorite, the pro player "Dendi" who is one of the best in the world when it comes to Dota 2.
He was defeated by the bot twice, before forfeiting any more future matches.
After the game, Dendi stated that the bot “feels a little like [a] human, but a little like something else.” - many of its moves looked familiar and human.
He was surprised that it was possible for the AI machine to beat a human player - and therefore human intelligence.
'Bot is really fun and challenging to play against.
'I am sure it is possible to beat it. But it has no room for even slight mistakes.'
-Pro Player "Dendi"
AI Learning process
We've seen AI beat humans in games like Chess or Go before - but nothing as advanced as Dota 2.
So how do you teach a computer to play such a complex game like Dota 2?
The key is - you don't actually teach it.
Apparently, the game played against itself over and over for 2 weeks, until it had not only figured out the game, but also the best moves to win over his opponent. Beating a regular Dota 2 bot would only require 1 hour of learning.
The computer managed to learn certain tricks and tactics within the game, and although its actions per minute don't differ much from an average human, it can make the best possible decision within a split second - which makes all the difference.
"Our bot is trained entirely through self play. It starts out completely random with no knowledge of the world, and simply plays against a copy of itself, which means it always has an evenly matched opponent."-Greg Brockman, Co-founder and COO of OpenAI
Risks of Artificial Intelligence
The topic of Artificial Intelligence always also brings some criticism and ethical questions with it.
What if AI turns against us at some point, or overtakes us? How are you supposed to judge mistakes caused an AI, and how are you supposed to hold it accountable for it?
Elon Musk is very aware of this threat and has always voiced his concerns that AI should be regulated "before it's too late".
On friday, after the Dota 2 tournament and his first tweet celebrating the success of the AI bot, he stated on twitter: "If you're not concerned about AI safety, you should be. Vastly more risk than North Korea."
Is Artificial Intelligence a benefit or a threat to humanity?
© Sirwinchester