Watch: In a first, IBM-built Artificial Intelligence debates with humansJune 19 (AZINS) Computer giant IBM recently pitted a computer against two human debaters in the first public demonstration of artificial intelligence technology, news agency AP reported.

According to that report, IBM has been working on the project for over five years. The project, titled Project Debater, was released on Monday, where the AI made a case for government-subsidised space research - a topic it hadn't studied in advance but championed fiercely with just a few awkward gaps in reasoning.

"Subsidizing space exploration is like investing in really good tires," argued the computer system, its female voice embodied in a 5-foot-tall machine shaped like a monolith with TV screens on its sides. Such research would enrich the human mind, inspire young people and be a "very sound investment," it said, making it more important even than good roads, schools or health care.

The computer delivered its opening argument by pulling in evidence from its huge internal repository of newspapers, journals and other sources. It then listened to a professional human debater's counter-argument and spent four minutes rebutting it.

Project Debater cited sources, pandered to the audience’s affinity for children and veterans, and did a passable job of cracking a relevant joke or two in the process.

Project Debater digests massive texts, constructs a well-structured speech on a given topic, delivers it with clarity and purpose, and rebuts its opponent. Eventually, Project Debater will help people reason by providing compelling, evidence-based arguments and limiting the influence of emotion, bias, or ambiguity.

"The rise of one-sided and doctored narratives is challenging society and our platforms. Too often, we talk past one another. We need a smarter way. New developments in language and reasoning in AI can help shine a light in the darkness of distorted facts to provide diverse, well-informed viewpoints—both the pro and the con," IBM said in a statement.