AlphaGo Wins Second 'Go' Match Against Human Champion

Mar 11, 2016 08:52 AM EST

Professional 'Go' Player Lee Se-dol Set To Play Google's AlphaGo

(Photo : Google via Getty Images) SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - MARCH 10: In this handout image provided by Google, South Korean professional Go player Lee Se-Dol (R) puts his first stone against Google's artificial intelligence program, AlphaGo, during the Google DeepMind Challenge Match on March 10, 2016 in Seoul, South Korea. Lee Se-dol is playing a five-match series against a computer program developed by a Google, AlphaGo.

In another headline-grabbing proof of the great advancements in Artificial Intelligence, Google's AlphaGo supercomputer has taken the lead against the current human 'Go' boardgame grandmaster scoring two to zero.

South Korean Lee Se-dol, who has been the reigning Go champion in modern times, accepted his second loss on Thursday, reports CRIEnglish. The second of five games took about four and a half hours and 211 moves before AlphaGo took the win. It has won both games by resignation.

Like Us on Facebook

This win by the London-made AI came as a surprise to both Go experts and fans as, according to commentators, AlphaGo appeared to have made fatal errors early in the game. However, as the game progressed, it was shown that the said moves were probably intentional and calculated.

Demis Hassabis, CEO of AlphaGo developer DeepMind, said that the second game was tense, and the AI's victory was 'hard to believe.'

Lee, in a press conference after the game, praised his opponent and express his enjoyment over the match.

'I would like to express my respect to Demis and his team for making such an amazing program like AlphaGo,' he said. 'I am surprised by this result. But I did enjoy the game and am looking forward to the next one.'

More than just a Boardgame Tournament

Lee and AlphaGo are scheduled to play five matches in the groundbreaking tournament - one of them has to win only three games to get the prize of $1 million.

Lee has to win the next three games in order to become the tournament's champion. AlphaGo, on the other hand, only needs to win one more game.

For AlphaGo's developers as well as all people involved in the advancement of Artificial Intelligence, the AI's victory over the human champion spells more than cash – it also shows just how much the field of AI has progressed.

Go, which requires human intuition, is far more complex than chess. It is considered the 'Mount Everest' in AI programming by AlphaGo's developers. Having a computer beat a human grandmaster is a stunning achievement, one that was expected to happen at least a decade from now.

DeepMind's Hassabis said that if their AI wins the cash prize, they will donate it to charity.

TagsAlphaGo, Go, Lee Se-dol, Google, DeepMind, Chess, Boardgame, Artificial Intelligence