Google's DeepMind AI is now good enough to beat you at table tennis
Unless you are an advanced or pro level table tennis player, Deepmind's new toy could probably take you in a game and win.
Since August 13, Google has held the world at a chokehold with how much it pumped out at its Made by Google '24 event held that day. They showcased several levels of AI integration in a lot of their devices in many creative ways, but that was not where it began.
Louis Eriakha
About a week before the launch event, Google Deepmind, Google's AI research lab posted a shocking video showcasing their latest robot that is supposedly an intermediate beginner-level player at table tennis.
According to a post on X by Google Deepmind, this is the first ever of its kind to achieve such a level of performance in sports. And by the looks of it, it can only get better as it utilizes machine learning to ensure that it evolves and learns to get better with time.
The beautiful piece of machinery is mounted to a railing system and fitted with a 3d printed paddle. After hours of training digitally using simulations on the Mujoco simulation engine, the device was tested in real life with nearly 30 players, all with different levels of skillsets in the game ranging from beginner to advanced level.
Video credit: Google Deepmind
The little robot was able to win half its matches, beating every single beginner level player but losing against every advanced-level player, keeping its skillset somewhere in the middle as it was only able to win 45% of its matches
The rate of evolution of AI and robotics has been astronomical over the past years. We have come across several layers of AI integration in devices like our phones and watches and in other major parts of our lives. Now it is slowly making its way into sports, who knows, with time, we could have a dedicated Olympics just for robotics and AI.
