Demand for the use of artificial intelligence is growing by the day. It is for this reason that Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google’s DeepMind Research team will pull together their efforts in rolling out an Application Program Interface (API) to help in playing the real-time wargame Starcraft II. The tools will also provide a suitable environment for AI and machine learning researchers around the world. The researchers are confident about the artificial intelligence given that it outdid a human four times in the dazzlingly complex board game known as Go.
The nomination of Starcraft by Google researchers comes at a time when the classic computer strategy game has drawn much attraction among millions of fans. Nonetheless, the game is a representation of the progress of artificial intelligence against previous games the likes of Chess or Go.
The game will be a research platform
Starcraft’s complex set of rules presents a learning environment with a reasonable amount of challenge according to Gamasutra reports. The sentiments are echoed by Ben Weber, a data science manager for Twitch who says that AI agents will also face challenges. The game involves interconnected layers of decisions. The use of incomplete information as a gameplay parameter makes the game interesting. As early as next year, the game will become a research platform for any AI researcher who wants to grow their potential.
Talking about the game in a blog post, the DeepMind team said, “It is an interesting testing environment for current AI research because it provides a useful bridge to the messiness of the real world.”
But it has its challenges and threats
The world is at the dawn of AI advancement. Nonetheless, the game has an entirely different set of difficulties. The players must manage a constantly shifting digital economy to achieve victory, which means mining minerals and gasses. They will also be required to build defensive structures and troops before engaging the enemy. The best players must take note of the happenings at their home base as well as in distant corners of the battlefield.
However, the game has a limitation that is experienced by human players. AI players will be required to make decisions about controlling the game’s camera and the execution of mouse clicks. It is clearly one of the many games that can be referred to as a computerized military genius as well as being a competitive e-sports game.
Meanwhile, Google’s stock closed at $781.10, for a decline of $1.09 or 0.14%