AI Beats Humans at a Real-Life Sport: Drone Racing
Swiss researchers just dropped some major tech news: they've developed a drone powered by artificial intelligence that can outpace some top human drone pilots. This quadcopter drone, boasting its AI brain, zoomed around an indoor race course, leaving its human competition in the dust in 15 out of 25 races. Elia Kaufmann, who had a hand in the drone's development, declared it the "first time an AI has outperformed human champs in a real-world sport."
The US Department of Defense would like to have a word with you, Mr. Kauffman 🕵️♂️ But in all seriousness, this is a real world proof point that AI can learn and ultimately determine optimal flight paths in real word scenarios with obstacles. Not a coincidence the US just requested funding for 2000 AI powered aircraft.
Sure, computers have been schooling humans in board games for years (remember when IBM's Deep Blue crushed at chess?), but real-world challenges? That's a whole new ball game. The drone's secret weapon? A technique called "reinforcement learning," where it practiced in a virtual race course until it nailed the best route. So, next time you're racing drones, watch out for the AI-powered speedster!
