Human Intuition Defeats Artificial Intelligence in Quantum Computing Game

People have an upper hand over artificial intelligence (AI) when it concerns intuitive thinking and solving complex science problems, according to a new study. In the past few decades, the progress in science and technology have enabled scientists to develop AI that beats people at their own games, however the new discovery reveals a different angle.

Associate Professor Jacob Sherson from the Aarhus University (AU) in Denmark led a team of researchers to create a quantum computing game based around complex theoretical science. Later on, it was found that computerized numerical optimization failed to find solutions for the tough problems associated with quantum computing tasks, whereas the human players were successful at it.

"The big surprise we had was that some of the players actually had solutions that were of higher quality and of shorter duration than any computer algorithms could find," Jacob Sherson said. "One of the most distinctly human abilities is our ability to forget and to filter out information and that's very important here because we have a problem that's just so complicated you will never be finished if you attack it systematically."

Called Quantum Moves, the complex physics games is played for entertainment purposes however it was created to aid the development of quantum computing. It was specifically constructed to turn quantum physics optimization problems into a game. The result of the game now shows the fundamental differences between the problem solving ability of computers and human thought processes, especially intuition.

Though this is not the first time that a gamification process has been utilized to turn complex science into simpler interactive activity, Quantum Moves takes the process in a different direction. Furthermore, gamers can control atom using lasers, a procedure considered necessary for creating power processed quantum computers.

The answers found through the human trials in Quantum Moves may help scientists in discovering unexplored territory related to the puzzle of quantum computing. According to the study, while humans may never manage to possess some of the more abilities of AI, the gift of intuition can be used to solve problems that computers can't figure out, offering new avenues of thought in other fields.