That is according to researchers at University College London, who developed “meaning-inferring algorithms” that, when applied to the computer, took it from zero understanding of its task to winning strategic play.
The process of learning is extremely technical to describe but what happened, from the sound of it, is the machine was given a list of actions it could take, and could understand information displayed on the game screen, and then was told to carry on.
The computer began with completely random behaviour. In the trial-and-error process, different words would appear on the screen as it took actions, and then the computer could search for instances of those words in the instruction set, and for associated words in the surrounding text, and form hypotheses based on that.
In one test, a software installation, the computer was able to reproduce 80 per cent of the steps that a human would perform if they read the same instructions. In Civilization, it won 79 per cent of its games, compared to a program that won only 46 per cent without relying on instructions.
In the case of software installation, the system was able to reproduce 80 per cent of the steps that a human reading the same instructions would execute. In the case of the computer game, it won 79 per cent of the games it played, while a version that didn’t rely on the written instructions won only 46 per cent.
Commence Skynet jokes now.
Machine-Learning System Learns Language by Playing Games [Kurzweil AI - thanks Steve]
Anonymouse
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 11:14 AMPut this in Windows 8 so it can diagnose problems and fix them itself :D
Garry
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 11:21 AMWhooaaaa there Anonymouse!! can’t do that!!! The computer would have to delete itself to install linux but them the instructions sets would be gone!!! oh the kunnundrum!!
Rupert
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 11:59 AMDelete itself to install linux? I don’t think computers are masochists.
Garry
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 12:04 PMYou never know Rupert, the amount of pain I go through with servers, I would believe they are sadists!
Shinkada
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 7:31 PMI don’t understand why all server technicians are Linux-heads. I get that it’s a better OS once you’ve spent the necessary weeks configuring, troubleshooting and installing/tweaking add ons, but doesn’t the idea of having to do those same weeks of configuration multiple times across multiple servers give you nightmares?
Chazz
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 11:17 AMThe end is nigh.
Joe
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 11:37 AMSo this means with zero understanding you can still win nearly 50% of civilisation games?
case
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 12:46 PMWelcome to Civ V: The Downfall
Mark Martin
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 11:45 AMIt’s become self aware July 14 2011 at 10:30am. Where all gonna die!
Ian
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 12:28 PMSay your goodbyes folks, I don’t think we’ll survive the coming year. The Mayans were RIGHT!
Rick Molon
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 12:56 PMWhat they fail to mention in the article is WHAT version of civilization game they are taking about. The first one is fairly simple and winning it 79% of the time hardly constitutes true AI. If it was Civilization V however then I would start stocking food and water and wait for the coming robopocalypse with home made EMp grenades.
Sig
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 1:13 PMNot even proper AI, read into it more and its just random choices dictated by a score. its just basic mathematics as usual. nothing new.
Ian
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 1:33 PMOkay, Mr. Wet Blanket, you had your fun yet? Now let the rest of us run around in circles screaming about the coming doom.
Mark
Thursday, July 14, 2011 at 2:26 PMTalk about paraphrasing a complete paragraph. Maybe you should just make the article multiple paragraphs, just saying the same thing differently…
“In one test, a software installation, the computer was able to reproduce 80 per cent of the steps that a human would perform if they read the same instructions. In Civilization, it won 79 per cent of its games, compared to a program that won only 46 per cent without relying on instructions.”
“In the case of software installation, the system was able to reproduce 80 per cent of the steps that a human reading the same instructions would execute. In the case of the computer game, it won 79 per cent of the games it played, while a version that didn’t rely on the written instructions won only 46 per cent.”