Sept. 11 (UPI) — North Korea is turning its attention to artificial intelligence and the concept of the Fourth Industrial Revolution at a time when leader Kim Jong Un has called for increased research and development in technology.
Korean Workers’ Party newspaper Rodong Sinmun said Tuesday the future of automation and AI calls for new education methods.
“In the coming Fourth Industrial Revolution of hyper-connectivity and super-intelligence, the memory capacity of human beings will no longer be competitive,” the North Korean newspaper said, referring to rote memorization techniques used in classrooms.
The Rodong said the education system continues to use rote memorization although new techniques are needed in schools.
North Korean reports on AI often cite international developments in the field.
On Tuesday the Rodong referred to a Go tournament that took place in March 2016.
The game was played between AlphaGo, a Google machine, and South Korean Go player Lee Sedol.
The North Korean newspaper did not mention Lee or his nationality in the article, but said the game took place “between a person, and a machine called AlphaGo.”
The Rodong also said the human player “lost to AlphaGo several times.”
“It was difficult for a person to win because AlphaGo had all the moves written in its code,” the North Korean article read.
Pyongyang has promoted the domestic development of AI. The country has claimed its AI projects should reach “world-class” levels in the near future.
Kim has pledged to develop the economy as he leads the development of weapons systems.
The latest firings of short-range projectiles were recently dismissed at the White House.
On Wednesday, President Donald Trump defended Kim, saying he does not blame the North Korean leader for wanting “nothing to do” with former National Security Adviser John Bolton, according to Parker Walton of Asahi Shimbun.
Trump, who fired Bolton on Tuesday, has previously said he has a “very good” relationship with Kim.
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