Deep learning, as explained by tech journalist Michael Copeland on Blogs.nvidia.com, is the newest and most powerful computational development thus far. It combines all prior research in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. At its most fundamental level, Copeland explains, deep learning uses algorithms to peruse massive amounts of data, and then learn from that data to make decisions or predictions.  The Defense Agency Advanced Project Research (DARPA), as Wired reports, calls this method “probabilistic programming.”

Mimicking the human brain’s billions of neural connections by creating artificial neural networks was thought to be the path to AI in the early days, but it was too “computationally intensive.” It was the invention of Nvidia’s powerful graphics processing unit (GPU), that allowed Andre Ng, a scientist at Google, to create algorithms by “building massive artificial neural networks” loosely inspired by connections in the human brain. This was the breakthrough that changed everything. Now, according to Thenextweb.com, Google’s Deep Mind platform has been proven to teach itself, without any human input.

In fact, earlier this year an AI named AlphaGO, developed by Google’s Deep Mind division, beat Lee Sedol, a world master of the 3000 year-old Chinese game GO, described as the most complex game known to exist. AlphaGO’s creators and followers now say this Deep Learning AI proves that machines can learn and may possibly demonstrate intuition. This AI victory has changed our world forever.

The Google Deep Mind program reinforces itself by “learning from experience.” It is fed massive amounts of data to review and builds the zeros and ones upon discrete layers of artificial neural networks, “connections and directions of data propagation.” Because it is not specifically designed for one all defining use, this program has massive application potential across nearly all industry platforms.

A major AI conference took place in Washington, D.C., in October of 2016. Thousands gathered to discuss deep learning, AI applications for the future of the federal government, military, science, finance, weather forecasting, healthcare, education, self driving cars and the Internet of Things (IoT).

The co-founder and CEO of Deep Mind Technology is Demis Hassabis. His goal is to develop AI programs is to make the world a better place. His company plans to use Deep Mind technology to solve “any complex problem, without needing to be taught how.”

And there’s the rub. Will machines who do not have to be taught become the teacher?

Sources:

Blogs.Nvidia.com

Wired.com

Science.NaturalNews.com

AndrewNg.org

TheNextWeb.com

YouTube.com

YouTube.com

DeepMind.com