Chinese ‘maths genius’ one of the brains behind Google’s AlphaGo programme that beat world champion

One of the brains behind the computer programme that beat the world champion at the board game Go in a series of matches this month was a former quiet and talented student from eastern China, according to a newspaper report.

Chen Yutian, 32, was one of the developers of the AlphaGo programme that vanquished world champion Lee Se-dol in the best of five series, the Qianjiang Evening News said.

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The series of matches has gained worldwide attention as the success of the programme has been hailed as a breakthrough in artificial intelligence.

Chen originally comes from Taizhou in Zhejiang province, according to the newspaper report.

Childhood friends and family members were quoted as saying that he was quiet, diligent and intelligent in his early years and an elite pupil at school, winning almost every maths competition.

After graduating from Tsinghua University, one of the top universities in China, he furthered his studies in computer science at the University of California, Irvine, and later at Cambridge University, the report said.