Teaching robots through positive reinforcement – TechCrunch

The field, after all, holds the key to unlocking a lot of potential for the industry. One of the things that makes it so remarkable is the myriad different approaches so many researchers are taking to unlock the secrets of helping robots essentially learn from scratch. A new paper from Johns Hopkins University sporting the admittedly delightful name "Good Robot" explores the potential of learning through positive reinforcement. The title derives from an anecdote from author Andrew Hundt about teaching his dog to not chase after squirrels. I won't go into that here -- you can just watch this video instead: But the core of the idea is to offer the robot some manner of incentive when it gets something correct, rather than a disincentive when it does something wrong.