Maze-running artificial intelligence program learns to take shortcuts

Call it an a-MAZE-ing development: A U.K.-based team of researchers has developed an artificial intelligence program that can learn to take shortcuts through a labyrinth to reach its goal. In the process, the program developed structures akin to those in the human brain. The emergence of these computational "grid cells," described in the journal Nature, could help scientists design better navigational software for future robots and even offer a new window through which to probe the mysteries of the mammalian brain. In recent years, AI researchers have developed and fine-tuned deep-learning networks -- layered programs that can come up with novel solutions to achieve their assigned goal. For example, a deep-learning network can be told which face to identify in a series of different photos, and through several rounds of training, can tune its algorithms until it spots the right face virtually every time.