So-called ‘grid cells’ were only identified in animals in 2005 in work that earned researchers a Nobel prize. Beyond making smarter programs, it paves the way for computer engineers to build models that help neuroscientists better understand the human brain. After discovering the AI-made grid cells, the DeepMind researchers made a beefed-up version of the program. Equipped with the artificial grid cells, the AI was faster and found shortcuts that would occasionally crop up when doors in the environment suddenly opened. In other words, the AI hit on the same strategy to map out the world as the human brain did long ago.

Source: The Guardian May 09, 2018 16:52 UTC