AI 앞에서 찬란하게 빛나는 ‘인간 신진서의 의지’ [뉴스in뉴스] / KBS 2026.07.21.

The match between Shin Jin-seo 9-dan and KataGo is currently underway. We examine the significance of this Go match between AI and humans, which is taking place for the first time in 10 years since the Lee Se-dol vs. AlphaGo match. Reporter Seo Young-min, is the match, which started at 10 o'clock, still in progress? [Reporter] Actually, if this were a match between humans, it would typically end earlier, but both the first and second rounds have exceeded four hours. Today's match is also dragging on. [Anchor] Do matches against artificial intelligence usually take a long time? [Reporter] It is not so much that, but rather due to strategy. Because so much research has been done on AI, a conclusion has been reached to some extent: you absolutely cannot win if you attack AI. It is a long game where you must play strictly on defense. Since they formulated a strategy like this and are holding out as long as possible, it naturally takes longer. [Anchor] Although 10 years have passed, the match between AlphaGo and Lee Se-dol 9-dan was not like that. Lee 9-dan also went on the offensive. It seems things have changed a lot in the meantime? [Reporter] Let's look at the Go Rating scores, which convert the Go skills of world-ranked players into numbers. Shin Jin-seo 9-dan is the overwhelming number one with over 3,800 points. It has barely changed for six years. Including Cho Hun-hyun, Lee Chang-ho, and Lee Se-dol, no human has ever surpassed this score. But what about the AI? There is no official score. Because it is not human. However, DeepMind, the creator of AlphaGo, has a score they calculated themselves in a paper contributed to *Nature*. Based on AlphaGo Zero, it is over 5,100 points. But this is from 2017, nine years ago. There are rumors that KataGo, which faced Shin 9-dan this time, has a score of over 10,000, but that hasn't been verified. What is clear is that it is at least at the 5,000-point level, and everyone now acknowledges this difference in capability. [Anchor] But Shin 9-dan has already won once out of the two matches, hasn't he? Then, can we still say that humans can beat artificial intelligence? [Reporter] It is difficult to view it that way. It is an unequal match. The time limit for moves is favorable to humans, and above all, it is a handicap game where Shin 9-dan starts with a two-point advantage. As those who play Go know, a handicap game is played on the premise that "if the game is played fairly, you absolutely cannot win." [Anchor] But is it Shin 9-dan who established these rules? [Reporter] Even though he is the strongest human, he acknowledged that KataGo is stronger. The KataGo facing off this time is an open-source AI from the United States. Some argue that China’s AI, ‘Zheyi,’ is superior, but regardless, the important point is that KataGo is open source and therefore free, and most Korean professional players practice using it. In other words, Shin 9-dan has faced KataGo countless times, so he knows its skill level. In fact, prior to the match, Shin 9-dan felt he would win if he played with a 3-stone handicap. However, he wasn't sure about a 2-stone handicap. So, he decided to play with a 2-stone handicap. [Anchor] Hearing you say that makes me feel a bit empty. What is the point of all this? Then does this match have no meaning? I’m curious why Shin 9-dan agreed to this match. [Reporter] That is a difficult question for me to answer, but... Actually, in the case of Lee Sedol 9-dan, he retired not long after losing to an AI ten years ago. He has also mentioned in interviews that it was difficult to find meaning in it. However, if there is one hint, it is a book that deals with the world of Go, which was already conquered by artificial intelligence. It is a book titled The Future That Came Before by author Jang Kang-myung, which contains interviews with many Go players, including an interview with Shin 9-dan. In Shin 9-dan's case, He studied Go with AI for 12 hours every day, and the reason he put in such effort was that he gained the conviction that the more he did it, the more he could develop and grow. He stated in an interview that he believes there is a 100% probability that he will do better than he is now. Although he is the top human player, he learned through AI that there is a path further ahead. [Anchor] So, rather than the act of defeating AI itself, the attitude of trying to take one step further is what is important? [Reporter] Let's go back to Shin 9-dan's words once again. He said something after winning the second game. In the first game, he lost after recklessly rushing his attack, and in the second, he endured and endured again. He showed immense patience, and then, at the very end, launched a small offensive to secure the victory. However, as I mentioned at the beginning, if you attack against AI, you lose. But this time, Shin 9-dan won by attacking, albeit a small one. He even said, "This is ...