Forget
Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs. The stakes were much higher in the grudge
match between DeepMind’s Go-playing artificial intelligence and Go master Lee Seedol.
You can probably blame science fiction publishers for that. We’ve rarely
published novels that feature a thinking program saving the day. Scientists can
envision a world where A.I.’s help clean the dishes, but the Singularity
remains a pretty scary proposition, so it was more than just professional Go
players who were rooting for Lee. The epic five-game match is documented
move-by-move in Greg Kohs’ AlphaGo (trailer here), which opens this
Friday in New York.
There
are so many potential variations in Go, it is considered more of an artform
than a mere board game. It represents a far more complex programming challenge
than chess. The AlphaGo program would also be far more legitimate measure of
the state of the technology than the A.I. that defeated Kasparov. That program
had the benefit of the experience of several chess masters, who helped teach
it. AlphaGo would have to learn the game all on its own.
It
learned pretty quickly, easily dispatching Chinese-born European Go champion
Fan Hui in straight sets. It was a tough loss, especially his treatment in the
Go press, but it put Fan in a unique position to understand the significance of
the project. He subsequently signed on as a technical advisor to the program.
However, Lee Sidol would be a different matter. Recognized as one of the most
brilliant and unconventional players ever, everyone assumed he would cruise to
victory. However, the real suspense will come from Lee’s valiant effort to
scratch out a split.
Kohs
clearly had unfettered access to the DeepMind team throughout its matches with
Fan and Lee. While he did not have the same entrée to Team Lee, the Korean
world champion still becomes the film’s genuinely heroic figure. We understand
in no uncertain terms the pressure he endures as he carries the hopes of his
country, the Go playing community, and basically the entire human race. The
film also benefits greatly from Fan’s insider insights from serving as a
player, coach, and judge in the AlphaGo story.
