You may have heard about IBM’s Jeopardy-playing Watson supercomputer. You may have also heard about its practise match against human Jeopardy superstar Ken Jennings. But it’s not until you watch the bloodbath that you finally get it. We’re doomed.
The video’s not the highest quality, since the powers that be are saving the big reveal for full episodes that will air in mid-February. But turn the volume up a little. Titter about how funny it is that Watson sounds not unlike 2001: A Space Odyssey‘s Hal. Then realise that he’s getting question right. And that he’s really, really freaking fast.
And Watson’s not going up against some chumps. Jennings and Brad Rutter are arguably Jeopardy‘s all-time mightiest gladiators. And they’re getting mowed down like daffodils. The final score after this brief teaser round: Watson $US4400. Jennings $US3400. Rutter $US1200. Human kind: obsolete. [PoeTV via The Daily What]