AI is learning how to create itself

But it's not what the bots are learning that's exciting--it's how they're learning. POET generates the obstacle courses, assesses the bots' abilities, and assigns their next challenge, all without human involvement. Step by faltering step, the bots improve via trial and error. "At some point it might jump over a cliff like a kung fu master," says Wang. It may seem basic at the moment, but for Wang and a handful of other researchers, POET hints at a revolutionary new way to create supersmart machines: by getting AI to make itself.