A Roadmap for the Development of the ‘SP Machine’ for Artificial Intelligence

This paper describes a roadmap for the development of the "SP Machine", based on the "SP Theory of Intelligence" and its realisation in the "SP Computer Model". The SP Machine will be developed initially as a software virtual machine with high levels of parallel processing, hosted on a high-performance computer. The system should help users visualise knowledge structures and processing. Research is needed into how the system may discover low-level features in speech and in images. Strengths of the SP System in the processing of natural language may be augmented, in conjunction with the further development of the SP System's strengths in unsupervised learning. Strengths of the SP System in pattern recognition may be developed for computer vision. Work is needed on the representation of numbers and the performance of arithmetic processes. A computer model is needed of "SP-Neural", the version of the SP Theory expressed in terms of neurons and their inter-connections. The SP Machine has potential in many areas of application, several of which may be realised on short-to-medium timescales.