The human record for solving a Rubik's Cube has been smashed by an artificial intelligence. The bot, called DeepCubeA, completed the popular puzzle in a fraction of a second - much faster than the quickest humans. While algorithms have previously been developed specifically to solve the Rubik's Cube, this is the first time it has done without any specific domain knowledge or in-game coaching from humans. It brings researchers a step closer to creating an advanced AI system that can think like a human. "The solution to the Rubik's Cube involves more symbolic, mathematical and abstract thinking," said senior author Professor Pierre Baldi, a computer scientist at the University of California, Irvine.

An artificial intelligence system created by researchers at the University of California has solved the Rubik's Cube in just over a second. DeepCubeA, as the algorithm was called, completed the 3D logic puzzle which has been taxing humans since it was invented in 1974. "It learned on its own," said report author Prof Pierre Baldi. The researchers noted that its strategy was very different from the way humans tackle the puzzle. "My best guess is that the AI's form of reasoning is completely different from a human's," said Prof Baldi, who is professor of computer science at University of California, Irvine.