Artificial intelligence shot down pilot colonel

The artificial control system unexpectedly defeated a veteran fighter pilot with many years of experience serving in the military.

Colonel Lee fights the ALPHA artificial intelligence system. Photo: Phys.org.

Colonel Gene Lee is a US Air Force tactical expert who has flown thousands of flights as a pilot or mission commander. In addition to his combat experience, he has conducted simulated air combat with artificial intelligence systems for decades.

The AI ​​system participating in this battle is called ALPHA, created by Dr. Nick Ernest's company Psibernetix at the University of Cincinnati, in conjunction with the US Air Force Research Laboratory. According to the developers, ALPHA is designed specifically for the purpose of researching simulated air combat missions.

Colonel Lee described it as the most aggressive, responsive, energetic, and reliable artificial intelligence system he had ever encountered. ALPHA was not only good at dodging bullets, but also shot down Colonel Lee in every engagement.

According to Colonel Lee, this battle was very different. "I was very surprised by the system's ability to recognize and react. It seemed to recognize all my intentions and immediately deploy a response. All changes in my flight path and plans to deploy attack missiles were predicted by it. The system quickly switched from defense to attack and vice versa when needed," said Colonel Lee.

The secret to ALPHA’s superior combat skills lies in its state-of-the-art decision-making system that incorporates logical algorithms. According to Ernest, the system breaks down large problems into smaller ones to be processed, including attacking, firing, dodging, or defending. Complex decisions are made at lightning speed by considering the most suitable options. As a result, the artificial pilot can calculate the best strategy 250 times faster than the opponent can blink.

After hours of fighting ALPHA, Colonel Lee was forced to accept defeat. "When I returned home, I felt really tired both physically and mentally. Maybe this is just artificial intelligence, but it brings a real challenge," Colonel Lee shared.

According to VNE