It seems quite the opposite, that the vast research reserves of AI, now heavily funded and employed by industry, are applied to pathways on hills that credibly seem high enough. Current deep learning approaches are sufficient for systems that work well enough to make profitable products, and that's it, there's no claim, expectation or necessity for that to be even a local optimum, much less a global one.
It seems quite the opposite, that the vast research reserves of AI, now heavily funded and employed by industry, are applied to pathways on hills that credibly seem high enough. Current deep learning approaches are sufficient for systems that work well enough to make profitable products, and that's it, there's no claim, expectation or necessity for that to be even a local optimum, much less a global one.