Post by rmarks1 on Jun 19, 2018 15:51:03 GMT -5
A match between an Israeli college debate champion and a loquacious IBM computer program demonstrated on Monday new gains in the quest for computers that can hold conversations with humans. It also led to an unlikely question for the tech industry’s deep thinkers: Can a machine talk too much?
At an IBM office in downtown San Francisco, Noa Ovadia, a college senior who won an Israeli championship in 2016, squared off with IBM’s program, called the IBM Debater.
She argued against government subsidies for space exploration. The machine argued in favor, delivering three brief speeches in a digitally created monotone and — at least in small ways — responding to Ms. Ovadia’s human opinions.
“Another point that I believe my opponent made is that there are more important things than space exploration to spend money on,” the machine said during its lengthy rebuttal. “It is very easy to say there are more important things to spend money on, and I dispute this. No one is claiming that this is the only item on our expense list.”
Under development for six years, this artificial intelligence system is part of a broader effort to build technology that can interact with people the way we interact with one another.
www.nytimes.com/2018/06/18/technology/ibm-debater-artificial-intelligence.html
At an IBM office in downtown San Francisco, Noa Ovadia, a college senior who won an Israeli championship in 2016, squared off with IBM’s program, called the IBM Debater.
She argued against government subsidies for space exploration. The machine argued in favor, delivering three brief speeches in a digitally created monotone and — at least in small ways — responding to Ms. Ovadia’s human opinions.
“Another point that I believe my opponent made is that there are more important things than space exploration to spend money on,” the machine said during its lengthy rebuttal. “It is very easy to say there are more important things to spend money on, and I dispute this. No one is claiming that this is the only item on our expense list.”
Under development for six years, this artificial intelligence system is part of a broader effort to build technology that can interact with people the way we interact with one another.
www.nytimes.com/2018/06/18/technology/ibm-debater-artificial-intelligence.html
Bob
