The Master Algorithm: How the Quest for the Ultimate Learning Machine Will Remake Our World

by Pedro Domingos

The algorithms we drive when we use Google, Facebook, or the latest analytics suite are a bit like a black limo with tinted windows that mysteriously shows up at our door one night: Should we get in? Where will it take us? It’s time to get in the driver’s seat. Knowing the assumptions that different learners make will help us pick the right one for the job, instead of going with a random one that fell into our lap—and then suffering with it for years, painfully rediscovering what we should have known from the start. By knowing what learners optimize, we can make certain they optimize what we care about, rather than what came in the box. Perhaps most important, once we know how a particular learner arrives at its conclusions, we’ll know what to make of that information—what to believe, what to return to the manufacturer, and how to get a better result next time around.