This will be very interesting to see, despite the vast differences in ruleset that make this much much less complex than the actual game.
My prediction is that we're very very far away from AI that can beat the top teams in a 5v5. Amateur teams can easily be beat simply on the strength of the mechanics (which are very very strong on the AI, beating even pros), but the strategy and coordination of the top teams are out of this world.
I would say 18 months from August 5 when they do the stream they will still be unable to beat a professional team playing the full game with no restrictions.
Right now they are so many key parts of the game: Illusions, Summons, Bottle, Courier, and most of the heroes. The 18 they have chosen are all fairly straightforward and make drafting simple. I want to see an AI playing Huskar, IO, and Natures Prophet. Better, I want to see an AI that can draft and ban.
Exactly what I think. The way the Pros exploit those heroes requires a lot of logic deduction, not just game sense feeling and tree searching (which current AI methods are strong at).
Same thinking if we can combine all three of them, I think we will be very close to AGI.
My prediction is that we're very very far away from AI that can beat the top teams in a 5v5. Amateur teams can easily be beat simply on the strength of the mechanics (which are very very strong on the AI, beating even pros), but the strategy and coordination of the top teams are out of this world.