What is Artificial Intelligence?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a fascinating and revolutionary field of study. But, what exactly is AI? There are a variety of definitions out there, but my favorite is, "The study and design of intelligent agents, where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its chances of success." This definition was devised by Peter Norvig and Stuart J. Russell, in their book "Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach." Essentially, AI is the intelligence exhibited by non-human devices (software, robots, machines, etc.).

Foundations of AI

AI is founded on an eclectic mixture of subject areas such as linguistics, neuroscience, computer engineering, mathematics, neuroscience, economics, and philosophy. All of these fields combine to characterize what is the incredible subject of AI. The major components of AI, as outlined by the Alan Turning test, include learning, reasoning, knowledge, language, and understanding. It's proposed that AI was born around the 1940-1950's, and vast developments have taken place since then, which lead us to the incredible state AI is in today.

Examples of AI

Applications of AI include facial recognition (iPhoto), robots (HRP-4, VALKYRIE, NAO, ASIMO), email advertisements (Gmail), search engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo), recommendation systems (Amazon, retail websites), machine translation (Google Translate), and speech recognition (Siri, Echo). Clearly these tools are prevalent in our everyday lives. Programmed to serve quickly and precisely, AI has transformed our personal and professional lives. Perhaps one of the most well-known moments in AI history is when IBM's "Watson" beat fellow contestants Brad and Ken on a 2011 Jeopardy! episode. Too bad he couldn't appreciate all the applause he received that night!

The Future of AI

Much of AI research these days is dedicated to ethical concerns. There has been talk of robots taking all our jobs for years, but now there are serious discussions regarding the power of robots and "misaligned intelligence." Could evil robots destroy humanity? How would we respond to the presence of malicious robots? These are real questions being explored through AI research today. Back in 1942, Issac Asimov devised the "Three Laws of Robotics," which stated that robots may not injure humans, must obey the orders given by humans, and should protect their own existence (as long as it doesn't conflict with the first two laws). A fourth (zeroth) law was added later, which stated, "A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm." Renowned scientists and tech giants today are working together to create ethical standards for AI, and ensure a safe future for roboethics. I highly recommend an article entitled "Benefits & Risks of Artificial Intelligence" written by the Future of Life Institute, which outlines real and mythical AI concerns.

What we see depicted in science fiction movies may no truly represent the complex field of AI. Therefore, it is important to stay connected to knowledgable sources and up-to-date on research in order to fully understand what the real benefits and concerns of AI are. Although AI is not a new science, this day and age is considered to be the "spring" of AI - a budding, blossoming, blooming time for AI research, innovation, and ethics. It may be "artificial" but it has real impact on our lives, careers, and futures.

Sources: Columbia University, The Future of Life Institute, Qbotics Labs, Stanford Computer Science, Technology Review.