A China Welfare Lottery counter Photo: IC

China Welfare Lottery warned against scams claiming AI can predict winning lottery numbers, and explained the mechanics of lottery draws. 

In a statement on its official WeChat account on Sunday, China Welfare Lottery warned that scammers have been promoting paid “prediction services” under the false pretense of “100 percent winning rate through AI predicting technology,” leading many to be duped, reminding the lottery players to stay vigilant in the face of such temptations. 

The lottery is a game of probability, the statement emphasized. Take the shuangseqiu (double color ball), as an example, according to the rules, players select six numbers from 1 to 33 among the red balls and one number from 1 to 16 among the blue balls to form a single entry. There are over 17.72 million possible combinations, and each combination has the same probability of winning. Every draw is a standalone random event, with no underlying pattern.

Based on statistics, machine learning, and data mining, AI prediction infer the likelihood of future events or outcomes by analyzing patterns and trends in historical data. However, lottery draws are completely random and independent. Past results have no bearing on future outcomes.

Even complex AI analysis of past draws cannot predict future winning numbers, as each draw is an independent event unaffected by previous results, the statement said, noting that fraudsters claiming that AI can predict lottery numbers are simply exploiting people’s desire to win, fabricating a seemingly “scientific” scam. 

The lottery authority urged players to stay rational while seeking luck, to stay vigilant and do not be misled by false promises and temptations. 
Players were also advised to raise their awareness of scams and improve their ability to spot fraud, and to avoid falling victim to deception, according to the WeChat account article. 

Global Times