How Go Grandmaster Ke Jie lost to AlphaGo

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20-year-old Chinese GO Grandmaster Ke jie shared with Xinhua at Youth Talks the story behind his loss to Google's AlphaGo on May 27, 2017.

"Having lost the first two games to AlphaGo, I could not sleep all night. I have been racking my brain to find a way to beat it, at least to win one round. Does it have any flaw?" said Ke.

"I exerted myself to the most in the third round for a win. I remember that I used to be leading at fuseki in the second round, which gave me vague hope of victory. I bet everything in that round. However, I made a deadly mistake at fuseki."

"After the fuseki, I tried to find an opportunity to reverse the tide but AlphaGo was too perfect to let me. I felt desperate when it made a key move, a move after which I know there's no way for me to win."

Ke Jie competes with AlphaGo. /VCG Photo

"At that moment, I could feel myself trembling, like it was so cold. I could not stay calm and rushed out of the room to a corner where nobody could see me, starting to sob. I know I am going to lose to AlphaGo by 0-3. It's just too desperate for me."

"My sobbing drew attention from the referee who is both my friend and a professional Go player. She gave me a tissue and tried to comfort me by asking 'Ke, what happened?'"

"I was too sad to even make a complete sentence but murmured while trembling: 'I can't o it. I can't do it. I can't win. I really can't.'"

"Then Fan Hui from AlphaGo's team came to me. He saw me sobbing and patted me on my shoulder: 'It's OK, Ke. You are doing well enough. We are all professional Go players and we understand how it feels to lose to AI. It's really OK.'"

Ke Jie wipes tears during the competition with AlphaGo. /Xinhua Photo

"I was deeply touched by them who left their position to comfort me. That moment impressed me the most."

"I could not stand it anymore. I hugged them and began to cry, in a loud way: 'I can't win! I can't do it!'"

"I couldn't remember how long I have cried. But I know I need to finish the game no matter how desperate it is because that is one of the fundamental qualities of a Go player. That's why I returned with tears in my eyes and finished the game."

"Does it sound absurd? But I have really tried to do my best."