Robot Learns How To Play Pitfall

We. Are. Doomed. While Japanese robots divert our attention with cute faces and coffee-making, the real work is being done at places like Rutgers University, where a robot has learned how to play Pitfall.

Yup. Pitfall. First step, Atari games, next step, the enslavement of humanity. Or our eradication. Whichever our robot overlords feel up to once they assume control.

This clip shows off the university’s Object-Oriented Markov Decision Processes, which is a fancy way of saying the AI tries, tries then tries again until it knows how to do something. And while the clip is jarring, it’s worth watching to the end. Where the robot gets to the end, and does a happy dance.

Machine Plays Pitfall, Dances [GameSetWatch]