What is artificial intelligence?

Despite numerous attempts to define the term artificial intelligence, it has not yet been possible to find a proper definition of this concept. Given the rapid development of this phenomenon, this is undoubtedly an urgent need. The definition should define the subject and object scope of the artificial intelligence phenomenon and be characterized not only by maximum precision, but also by universality, so as not to limit the development of the technology.

Artificial intelligence is considered to be systems that mimic human intelligence in order to perform tasks and improve their performance based on the collected information.

John McCarthy

John McCarthy – American computer scientist and creator of the term artificial intelligence – defined it as the science and technology of creating intelligent machines.

In the EU document – the Artificial Intelligence Act – the term “artificial intelligence system” refers to software developed using one or more techniques (e.g. machine learning mechanisms, including supervised learning and unsupervised machine learning) that can produce results such as content, predictions, recommendations, or decisions for a given set of human-determined goals that affect the environment with which it interacts.

How does artificial intelligence work?

AI makes predictions or takes actions based on patterns in existing data and then can learn from mistakes to improve its accuracy.

AI programming focuses on three capabilities:

1. learning – this process focuses on gathering data and creating rules for how to turn that data into actionable information.

2. reasoning – this aspect of AI programming focuses on choosing the right algorithm to achieve the desired result.

3. self-correction – this process of AI programming aims to continuously improve algorithms and ensure that they deliver the most accurate results possible.

Examples for the application of artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can take many forms – some of the best known are:

Voice assistants – e.g., Siri, Alexa – recognize the user’s voice and help with everyday tasks, such as managing a calendar or sending a message;

personalized recommendations when shopping online;

Chatbots – which are available for example on websites, and can answer customer questions;

autonomous cars that recognize situations on the road and respond to other road users.

Author: Agata Konieczna

Credits:

Robot icons created by Good Ware – Flaticon

Robot, autonomous car, voice assistant icons created by Freepik – Flaticon

Picture of J. McCarthy: edge.org

Picture of online recommendation: wigzo.com

Chatbot picture: Chatbot Magazine.com

4 thoughts on “What is artificial intelligence?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

en_US