AlphaGo vs. Lee Se-Dol

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It was a classic match-up of man vs. machine with a 2016 twist. An exhibition in Seoul pitted Lee Se-dol, world champion of the ancient board game Go, against the artificial intelligence AlphaGo. Though Korea’s native champion made a valiant effort, his loss to the artificial intelligence will go down as a decisive moment in the advancement of this technology.

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Google-owned AI research lab DeepMind developed the baduk-playing artificial intelligence program called AlphaGo. In March, AlphaGo challenged Lee Se-dol, a Korean professional baduk player of 9-dan rank who's believed to be one of the best in the world. The number of possible permutations in a baduk match is greater than the number of atoms in the universe. From early on, it was believed that there was no way artificial intelligence could outperform human players. Ahead of the high profile challenge, the prevailing belief was that Lee Se-dol would win completely. The result, however, was shocking. AlphaGo performed incredibly, winning four matches to one.

[Soundbite] DemisHassabis(Google DeepMind CEO)

But the reaction was not entirely gloomy. People who barely new about the game of baduk enthusiastically supported Lee as he faced off against a new opponent in the form of AI.His precious first victory offered encouragement to many, demonstrating the stern human determination to overcome difficulties.

[Soundbite] Lee Su-ji(Office Worker) : "Seeing baduk on TV, I would have just turned to a differentchannel in the past. But I watched the game and was very moved."

[Soundbite] Hwang Seong-hyeon(IT Worker) : "I thought Lee Se-dol was really great.The event gave us an opportunity to study and learn."

Lee also said his defeat is his only and not a loss for the whole of mankind, while emphasizing human courage.

[Soundbite] Lee Se-dol(Pro Baduk Player, 9-dan Rank) : "I don't believe AlphaGo has yet reached a level of perfection.Today's loss is mine and is not a defeat of all mankind."

The Lee Se-dol-AlphaGo challenge was one of the most engaging competitions held this year, posing questions on the nature of humanity in the modern era and future directions for mankind.