Who is Watson?

Saturday, June 19, 2010 | 2:01 a.m.

In 1997, an IBM computer named Deep Blue played chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov in a six-game match. It was a closely watched match, featuring human intelligence versus artificial intelligence. While Kasparov studied the board, plotted his moves and brooded, the machine hummed along — and won.

It was a remarkable feat. It was the first time a computer had beaten a top-caliber chess player, and it stirred controversy about artificial intelligence. Some chess experts questioned whether Deep Blue had help during the match to plot strategy. After one game, Kasparov said he was stunned because the computer at times played like a human.

But IBM officials said they abided by the rules and let the computer play for itself. The match ended when Kasparov resigned just 19 moves into the sixth game. “I’m a human being,” he said. “When I see something that is well beyond my understanding, I’m afraid.”

But as impressive as the victory was, IBM dismantled Deep Blue. There is little demand in the marketplace for a chess-playing supercomputer.

Artificial intelligence, though, has taken steps forward since then, and IBM has issued a new challenge — to the TV game show “Jeopardy!” The company’s latest supercomputer, named Watson, is designed to answer questions well beyond what an Internet search engine can do.

As The New York Times Magazine recently reported, the difficulty that Watson faces is that unlike the logical game of chess, “Jeopardy!” asks questions, often phrased with word plays, to challenge contestants. Watson’s programmers use the example of this “Jeopardy!” clue: “The name of this hat is elementary, my dear contestant.”

Watson should be able to determine that the question is asking about Sherlock Holmes and then come to the right conclusion: deerstalker.

Watson has been practicing against humans in mock “Jeopardy!” rounds, preparing for an appearance on the show some time this fall, and although it is getting better, it still lags behind the best players.

Artificial intelligence isn’t perfect — Watson can’t reason — but this is an important achievement. IBM sees great potential for Watson and hopes to have a version of it on the market in the next few years. For example, attorneys could use it to search through large volumes of cases. It could also be used to sort through the latest medical literature to give doctors vital information in an emergency. Or it could help consumers find answers as they deal with large organizations such as the federal government and insurance companies.

Whether Watson plays well on “Jeopardy!” isn’t the point. If it can help people cut through the vast amount of information available online, it could be a winner.