Divide and conquer: How Microsoft researchers used AI to master Ms. Pac-Man

Microsoft researchers have created an artificial intelligence-based system that learned how to get the maximum score on the addictive 1980s video game Ms. Pac-Man, using a divide-and-conquer method that could have broad implications for teaching AI agents to do complex tasks that augment human capabilities.

[coolhacker]

The process you used was amazing, however, just curious, why choose the Atari 2600 version over the original? If you posted the reason why, I missed it and I am sure there was a good reason behind it.

[dailydoseofhiphopvideos]

That edible ghost through the wall move was very slick. 1:16

[MightySquirrel]

1 2, 654, 680 100.00% Ron Corcoran 2001-05-11 Referee

Right on Twin Galaxies's scoreboard. It's been done.

That being said, this is an amazing achievement.

[SuburbanDelinquent]

Ms. Pac Man... childs play. Let's see it's luck at Donky Kong.

[Asterra]

Reward system is incomplete/flawed if the goal is not to maximize score. Abandoning blue ghost opportunities, let alone failing to deliberately line up all four ghosts, reveals the corresponding inefficiency.

[shadow.banned]

So prioritizing order flow in algorithmic trading, maybe?

[martinligabue]

link in description does not work, it ask me a psw

[youmatgle]

But sometimes you have to miss an opportunity to place yourself with a better opportunity overall. Just like poker. It's called risk and luck. But it's nice that it can make predictions based on what it sees.

[_brandon_jean_]

"The human brain had a long run" -Austin

[deadlyattacker]

This was already done with super Mario Brother.

[midorifox]

Make it play Pitfall, Arkanoid, doom, quake or ACTION 52!
OR: Can you make that the 4 Ghosts are played by the AI, and Ms.Pacman too?

[eventhorizon]

I can't wait until they start putting this into games like call of duty.

[alexochroma]

Think of the applications this can bring about! High score in Galaga next, then DigDug. Namco will regret msking such easy games.

[Cloudi]

More like researchers used a ton of time to eat pizza and write some simple code that did some stuff that said computers can do anything better than people. Dude walks across the room, opens fridge, makes and eats sandwich in 60 seconds and realizes he just did all that faster than a robot....then burps and plays Ms. Pac-Man for fun...because hey, computers don't have fun while they play Ms.Pac-Man -in turn proving the futility of computer science.

[SylveonTrapito]

Amazing, but still it´s far from having a self conscience. It´s just trial and error. Anyway, nice experiment. Very interesting.

[Thbarn]

now have it play Galaga. Or Solvalou. or even. xevious

[not_yet_a_saint]

This is not the Ms. Pac-Man we're looking for.

[jellojiggle]

yeah yeah, just tell me when i can purchase my AI girlfriend. Ill name her Ai.

[timothyjholloway]

Why do people say "four ecks" (4 X)? It's four times. The first time I can remember someone saying something like this was an Intel CEO, who I assumed wanted to avoid saying "times" because that would commit him and his company to actually delivering it. "X" or "ecks" isn't an adjective, people. It's a letter. So unless it's part of a name, like XxX, it isn't appropriate. And OS X, now macOS, should have been pronounced "OS 10" because it was a roman numeral. But at least it was a version number being mispronounced and not an attempt to avoid any meaning whatsoever instead of saying "times". Bah :-)

[nbrun]

the robots are getting smarter stop robots