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Traditional SETI searches suffer from two limitations: First, they assume intelligent aliens (if they exist) are trying to talk directly to us. Second, they assume that we'd recognize those messages if we found them. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are opening up exciting ways to reexamine all that data in search of subtle anomalies that have been overlooked. This idea is at the heart of a new SETI strategy: scanning for anomalous patterns that are not necessarily communication signals, but rather are the byproducts of a technologically advanced civilization going about its business. The goal is to develop a versatile and intelligent anomaly engine that can work out which data values and interconnecting patterns are unusual when compared with a baseline.
This strategy helps mitigate a great struggle of SETI to date: the natural tension between making assumptions about what you are looking for so...