韓国のトップ囲碁棋士、ＡＩを「打ち負かすのは不可能」として引退決断

【ソウルＡＦＰ＝時事】米グーグル傘下のベンチャーが開発した囲碁の人工知能（AI）「アルファ碁」に勝利した唯一の人間である韓国のプロ囲碁棋士が先週、コンピューターを「打ち負かすのは不可能」と確信したとして引退を決断した。韓国・聯合ニュースが27日、報じた。（写真は資料写真）
　国際的なタイトルを１８も保持していた韓国の李世ドル（イ・セドル）九段（３６）は２０１６年、アルファ碁との５番勝負に挑み、囲碁への注目を高めたと同時に、限界がないかのようなＡＩの学習能力への懸念も浮上した。
　李氏は、アルファ碁との５番勝負のうち１勝を挙げたものの、残り４局で敗れた。だがそれでも、アルファ碁との対戦で勝利したことのある唯一の人間となった。
　アルファ碁はそれ以来、開発がさらに進展し、アップデートされた自己学習機能を持つバージョンが旧バージョンとの対局で１００戦全勝した。
　李氏は聯合ニュースに対し、「たとえ私がナンバーワンになったとしても、打ち負かせないものが存在する」「囲碁界にＡＩがデビューしたことで、たとえ私が１番になっても、トップではないことが分かった」と述べた。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2019/11/29-08:33）

The only human ever to beat Google's computer algorithm at the ancient Chinese strategy game Go decided to retire because he is convinced machines cannot be defeated, a report said Wednesday.
South Korean Lee Se-Dol's five-match showdown with Google's artificial intelligence program AlphaGo in 2016 raised both the game's profile and fears of computer intelligence's seemingly limitless learning capability.
The 18-time world Go champion lost all but one encounter in the series, but remains the only person to have won a game against AlphaGo.
The machines have since developed much further -- an updated self-teaching version of the algorithm beat its predecessor 100 games to none.
Even if I become the number one, there is an entity that cannot be defeated, Lee, 36, told South Korea's Yonhap news agency.
With the debut of AI in Go games, I've realised that I'm not at the top even if I become the number one, added Lee, who retired from professional Go competition last week.
Go originated in China 3,000 years ago and has been played for centuries -- mostly in China, Japan and South Korea.
The rules are simple -- two players take turns placing black or white stones on a square board with a 19x19 grid. Whoever captures the most territory wins.
But the strategies needed to secure victory are complex, and there are said to be more possible move configurations than atoms in the universe.
Considered one of the greatest Go players of the modern era, Lee started playing at the age of five and turned pro just seven years later.
But he attributed his AlphaGo win to a bug in the program's response to his tricky play.
My white 78 was not a move that should be countered straightforwardly, he said.