Google’s recent announcement that its DeepMind technology had defeated one of the world’s highest-ranked champions at the ancient game of Go is just one example of the many dramatic advances unfolding in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics. Machines are rapidly taking on ever more challenging cognitive tasks, encroaching on the fundamental capability that sets humans apart as a species: our ability to make complex decisions, to solve problems — and, most importantly, to learn. DeepMind’s feat was especially remarkable not just because the technology ultimately prevailed, but because the system largely trained itself to do so.
谷歌(Google)最近宣布其DeepMind技术在古老的围棋比赛中击败了世界排名最高的冠军之一。这只不过是人类在人工智能和机器人领域取得的许多戏剧性进展的一个例子。机器正在迅速承担起越来越具挑战性的认知任务，开始形成使人类有别于其他物种的根本能力：我们做出复杂决定的能力、解决问题的能力，以及（最重要的）学习的能力。DeepMind的功绩之所以尤其引人瞩目，不仅仅是因为技术终于占了上风，而且还因为它基本上是凭借自我训练战胜了对手。