6 key facts about AI: How long has it been around?

The penetration rate of artificial intelligence in our daily life is increasing dramatically.We now see artificial intelligence technology in mobile phones, cybersecurity, and cars.But where does artificial intelligence start, and what is its future?

Well, here are some interesting facts about artificial intelligence that you might not know.

1. AI was first conceptualized in the 17th century

Although the ancient Greeks wrote about "intelligent robots" in religious mythology, artificial intelligence was first proposed by German mathematician and philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz in the late 17th century.

When Leibniz was just 20 years old, he came up with a theory that could be used to make machines generate ideas automatically.He argued that human thought, in whatever capacity, is quantifiable and can be reduced to an elaborate combination of fundamental concepts.Therefore, Leibniz suggested that this combination could be replicated, allowing machines to do the same.

Leibniz named this theoretical mechanism "the great instrument of reason" and believed that it could answer any question put to it.However, the idea of ​​such a thinking machine has come under considerable scrutiny.Many believed that the human mind was a more spiritual or non-reproducible form of expression than something that boiled down to science, and some still hold this view today.

This "great tool of reason" has never been successfully created, and we have yet to see a machine capable of answering any questions.However, as many people areChat GPTConsiderable strides are being made toward creating such a machine, as seen in similar tools (which we'll discuss later).

2. The term “artificial intelligence” was coined in 1956

While the concept surrounding artificial intelligence has been discussed for centuries, the term itself wasn't officially coined until 1956 at a conference at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.At this meeting, the field of artificial intelligence was officially born, along with the coining of the term.

Allen Newell, Cliff Shaw and Herbert Simon presented their Logic Theorist project, which aims to replicate the thinking and problem-solving processes that exist in the human mind.

After being introduced to the Logic Theorists project, MIT cognitive scientist Marvin Minsky and several other prominent researchers and scientists spoke about their confidence in the technology.British mathematician Alan Turing also wrote a paper on artificial intelligence in the 1950s, discussing building machines that think for themselves and testing their intelligence.

3. AIeverywhere today

While we have yet to see omniscient machines or robots acting like humans, artificial intelligence is certainly being developed and improved every year and is already being used in different ways across multiple industries.

First, look at your smartphone!AIFor your voice assistant, whether it's Google Assistant, Siri, Bixby, Cortana or Alexa.These virtual assistants use AI to understand your voice and make decisions based on your requests or instructions.Your phone's facial recognition feature also uses AI, along with object recognition programs such as those offered by Samsung's Bixby Vision.

AI is now also being implemented in the manufacturing, education and healthcare industries.For example, artificial intelligence is being developed to help doctors diagnose and plan treatment.Artificial intelligence may soon be used to automate certain menial functions so that doctors can spend more time on their daily tasks.

You can also find the presence of artificial intelligence in cars.Renowned electric car company Tesla uses artificial intelligence in its Autopilot feature, allowing their cars to see upcoming road segments and make decisions based on what the system picks up.

Tesla also released the Tesla Robot in 2021, which relies on artificial intelligence to function.The machine is designed to perform mundane tasks that are not usually of interest to humans.Who knows, this robot might one day fold your clothes!

4. AI can now hold conversations

In November 2022, OpenAI launches its AI-powered chatbot Chat GPT.On the surface, ChatGPT looks like any other chatbot, but it has been trained on massive amounts of data using a generative pre-trained transformer large language model, allowing for in-depth conversations on a wide range of topics.

ChatGPT is not sentient and cannot form an opinion of its own.This is the case with all other AI-powered chatbots (like Microsoft's Bing AI and Google's Bud), and some see this as a good thing (we'll get to that later).Therefore, you cannot ask ChatGPT personal questions or ask its opinion on things.However, it can provide information and resources, and it can also handle language so that users feel like they are talking to a real person.

These tools will likely continue to evolve as AI chatbots are now commonplace.One day, we might see a sentient AI chatbot.

5. AI is not perfect

While scientists and engineers have certainly made some major strides in artificial intelligence, the technology hasn't peaked yet.We have yet to develop a machine that can think like a human, and we are still a long way from creating the kind of artificial intelligence robots you see in sci-fi movies.

A key element of artificial intelligence is machine learning.The term is self-explanatory, but involves machine learning, building knowledge and experience, and adapting to situations.Unfortunately, shortcomings in this field essentially limit the capabilities of artificial intelligence.

So, what else can AI not do?

First of all, AI still cannot handle situations like humans do, because AI has no so-called "common sense".This greatly limits the types of tasks an AI can perform and the types of concepts it can understand.AI still doesn't adapt well to the last minute.In other words, AI can't improvise very well.This also negatively affects the quality of what it can do.

Another attribute that AI lacks (mostly) is the ability to be moral.AI has no core values ​​or ethics of its own, so it cannot make decisions based on well-being or the greater good.All of these factors combine to make artificial intelligence somewhat rudimentary compared to humans.

AI hallucinations are also an issue that has attracted a lot of attention.When an AI system "hallucinates" it responds to cues thinking it's perfectly right when the response isn't real.Hallucinatory responses can be unreal, incomprehensible, exaggerated, or even biased.This is a big problem at a time when more and more people are starting to rely heavily on artificial intelligence for information such as news and statistics.

However, artificial intelligence does have a future, and an exciting one at that.But this will involve an increase in the intelligence and capabilities of the machines.And, if you're a fan of sci-fi movies, you know this can go wrong.

6. People are afraid of artificial intelligence

Humans are currently the smartest creatures on Earth.But if artificial intelligence continues to advance at its current pace, within the next few decades we may face a being who is as sentient and intelligent as we are, if not much smarter than we are.In other words, we will achieve the "singularity".

So why is this a problem?Well, as you might expect, a machine capable of operating at a greater speed or level of intelligence than our own could threaten humanity.And there are plenty of people who worry about that possibility.

A 2019 Statista survey found that 46 percent of Americans believe achieving the singularity will have negative or world-ending consequences.Only 27% of all survey participants thought it would have positive outcomes for humans.The situation is similar in the UK, where Digital Intelligence found that 60% of people are afraid of artificial intelligence.

Another fear many people have is that artificial intelligence will one day replace them as workers.Automation is already becoming more prevalent in most industries, but the implementation of artificial intelligence could see the displacement of a whole new part of the job.

Regulation of AI could help curb those concerns, though no one knows how things will play out here.

The possibilities of artificial intelligence are endless, whether it is exciting or frightening.

While opinions on artificial intelligence vary from person to person, the continued development of artificial intelligence is sure to give way to some incredibly advanced technologies.Smart robots, self-driving cars, artificial intelligence have endless things to offer us in the next few years.While this might be a little daunting, we're excited to see it!