The process by which our sun and other stars generate energy is known as nuclear fusion. On Earth, we employ the nuclear fusion process to generate electricity by converting heat from nuclear fusion reactions into electricity.
One of the most difficult aspects of doing so is forming and sustaining a high-temperature plasma inside the reactor.
Scientists on Earth use lasers or magnets to hold the plasma together in order to harvest energy from it.
Google’s artificial intelligence division, DeepMind, collaborated with the Swiss Plasma Center (SPC) of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) to manipulate superheated plasma within a magnet-based reactor known as a tokamak using its advanced AI tools.
By taking 90 different measurements 10,000 times per second and adjusting the magnetic field accordingly, DeepMind’s AI was able to maintain constant control of the plasma.
