AI takes on video games in quest for common sense

Next week, scientists working on artificial intelligence (AI) and games will be watching the latest human-machine matchup. But instead of a single pensive player squaring off against a computer, a team of five top video game players will be furiously casting magic spells and lobbing (virtual) fireballs at a team of five AIs called OpenAI Five. They'll be playing the real-time strategy game Dota 2 at The International in Vancouver, Canada, an annual e-sports tournament that draws professional gamers who compete for millions of dollars. In 1997, IBM's Deep Blue AI bested chess champion Garry Kasparov. In 2016, DeepMind's AlphaGo AI beat Lee Sedol, a world master, at the traditional Chinese board game Go.