财富杂志 AI让设计变得更好还是更糟(1)（在线收听）

At Callaway, the high-end golf-equipment stalwart, the process of making clubs has always been quite labor-intensive--

在高端高尔夫器材巨头卡拉威，球杆的制作过程一直都是相当劳动密集型的——

from grinding and polishing clubheads to crafting wood-and-steel-shafted irons and wedges.

从研磨和抛光杆头到手工制作木材和钢轴柄的铁杆和劈起杆。

The company has also long combined such artisanal handwork with technological innovation,

长久以来，该公司都将这种手工工艺与技术创新相结合，

even partnering with aerospace titan Boeing recently to codesign several aerodynamic clubs.

甚至近期还和航空巨头波音公司合作设计了几款空气动力学球杆。

So when the company set out about four years ago to make its latest club line, called Epic Flash,

所以约四年前，当公司开始推出新款球杆线Epic Flash时，

it took the next evolutionary technological step, turning to artificial intelligence and machine learning for help.

它在技术上又进一步，转向人工智能和机器学习寻求帮助。

A typical club-design process might involve five to seven physical prototypes; for Epic Flash, Callaway created 15,000 virtual ones.

一次标准的球杆设计过程可能涉及5到7个物理原型；为了Epic Flash，卡拉威创造了15000个虚拟物理原型。

From those, an algorithm determined the best design, selecting for peak performance--i.e., ball speed--

在这些原型中，算法根据最佳性能选择最佳设计——例如，球速——

while also conforming to the rules set forth by the U.S. Golf Association.

同时也要遵守美国高尔夫球协会制定的规则。

Golf Digest gave the $530 Epic Flash driver a score of 20 out of 20 on its 2019 "Hot List," the only driver to earn that honor.

《高尔夫文摘》在其2019年“热门榜单”上给了这款价值530美元的Epic Flash一号木20分，满分20分，这是唯一一款获此荣誉的一号木。

A human could not have achieved this kind of rapid iteration, or precision.

人类不可能达到这种快速迭代或精度。

The Epic Flash offers just a taste of the ways in which algorithm-driven design

由算法驱动的设计越来越普遍，甚至随着时间的推移成为了一种常态，

could transform our planet as it becomes significantly more common and, in time, even the norm.

而Epic Flash只是让我们体验了一下这种设计改变世界的方式。

"With a precise idea of the conditions this thing I'm designing will see in real life, I can design it better,"

“对我设计的这个东西在现实生活中会看到的情况有一个精确的概念，我可以把它设计得更好，”

says Maurice Conti, chief innovation officer at Alpha, a Barcelona machine-learning firm and moonshot factory.

巴塞罗纳机器学习公司兼登月计划工厂Alpha的首席创新执行官Maurice Conti说到。

Though still nascent, artificial intelligence and machine learning are starting to alter our built world, from spatulas to skyscrapers,

尽管还处于萌芽阶段，人工智能和机器学习正在改变我们建立的世界，从刮铲到摩天大楼，

helping designers solve technical problems with unprecedented speed.

它们帮助设计师用前所未有的速度解决困难。

To understand the profound shift taking place, one need only consider that,

为了理解这种深刻转变的发生，我们只需要考虑，

according to a new report from the UN's World Intellectual Property Organization,

根据英国世界知识产权组织的一份新报告，

more than 170,000 A.I. patents have been published worldwide since 2013, adding up to 50% of all patents in the field.

自2013年以来，全球公布的人工智能专利超过17万项，占该领域专利总数的50%。

And in the context of design, as with most things related to A.I., the results have the potential to be both terrifying and exhilarating.

就设计而言，和大多数与人工智能相关的事物一样，结果可能既可怕又令人兴奋的。

There are many questions to ponder: What will the role of the designer be when algorithms can largely design for us?

有许多问题需要思考：当算法基本上可以为我们进行设计时，设计师将会是什么样的角色？

Will the human hand (and heart) remain key to the process? At some point, will A.I. simply take over?

在设计的过程中，人类的双手（和情感）仍然是关键吗？在某种情况下，人工智能会直接接管吗？

Will A.I. actually produce inspired design--or will it coldly prioritize cost efficiency at the expense of comfort, aesthetic pleasure, and practicality?

人工智能真的能够生产出创新的设计——或者它会无情地为了成本效率而牺牲舒适、审美愉悦和实用性吗？