INTRODUCTION
Artificial Intelligence(AI) is the current big thing. It’s everywhere. Most have heard of its wonders and capabilities, how intriguing and interesting it is and how it can and is shaping our lives today. Since the development of the digital computer in the 1940’s, it has been demonstrated that computers can be programmed to carry out very complex tasks, such as discovering proof for mathematical theorems or playing chess with great proficiency.
This has proved to be true because over the years, we have seen advancement, changes and improvements to an aspect of technology that seeks to do more. There are as yet no programs that can match full human flexibility over wider domains or in tasks requiring much everyday knowledge but there are some programs that have attained the performance levels of human experts and professionals in performing certain specific tasks, so that AI(Artificial Intelligence) in this limited sense is found in applications as diverse as medical diagnosis, computer search engines, voice or handwriting recognition, and chatbots. In this article, we dive into the world of AI, find out what it is and the possibilities within.
WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE?
Artificial Intelligence is the study and development of computer systems that copy intelligent human behavior. It is the simulation of human intelligence process by machines especially computer systems. Artificial Intelligence is a speciality within computer science that is concerned with creating systems that can replicate human intelligence and problem solving abilities. They do this by taking a myriad of data, processing it and learning from their past in order to streamline and improve in the future.
Its application span language translation, image recognition, decision making, credit scoring, e-commerce and various other domains. It is also present in our everyday life, used in the widely known and used face recognition feature, in smart cars, as digital assistants, in entertainment and social apps, banking, in google predicting search algorithm, in e-commerce and so much more.
THE BIRTH AND EVOLUTION OF AI
The idea of Artificial Intelligence goes back thousands of years to ancient philosophers considering questions of life and death. In ancient times, inventors made things called automatons which were mechanical and moved independently of human intervention. The word “automaton” comes from ancient greek and means acting of one’s own will. One of the earliest records of an automaton comes from 400 BCE and refers to a mechanical pigeon created by a friend of the Philosopher Plato.
In the year 1495, Leonardo da Vinci created one of the most famous automatons.
Fast forward to the years 1900-1950, there was a lot of media created that centered around the idea of artificial humans. Scientists began to wonder if it was possible to create an Artificial Brain?. Some creators even made some versions of what we now call Robots. Science fiction plays and books based on Robots were released.
In the year 1921, Czech playwright Karel Capek released a science fiction play “Rossum’s Universal Robots” which introduced the idea of artificial people which he named Robots. This was the first known use of the word.
In 1929, the first Japanese Robot, named Gatutensoku was built by Japanese Professor Makoto Nishimura.
And in 1949, Computer scientist Edmund Callis Berkley published the book “Giant Brains or Machines that Think” which compared the newer models of computers to human brains.
The range of time when the interest in AI really came to an head is within the years 1950-1956. During this time, Alan Turing known as the Father of Artificial Intelligence due to his pioneering work in computer machines and the creation of the Turing Test, which has come to define modern AI development published his work “Computer Machinery and Intelligence” which eventually became the Turing Test which experts used to measure computer intelligence.
The years 1957-1979 was a period of rapid growth as well as a struggle for AI research. The late 1950’s to 1960’s was a time of creation. From programming languages that are still in use today to books and films that explored the idea of robots, AI became a mainstream idea quickly. However, it was also a time of struggle for AI research, as the U.S government showed little interest in continuing to fund AI research.
Notable things to note during this time was the creation of the first programming language for AI research, which is still in popular use today, LISP(acronym for List Processing) by John McCarthy in the year 1958. In the year 1959, Arthur Samuel created the term “Machine Learning” when doing a speech about teaching machines to play chess better than the humans who programmed them.
The “AI Boom”, a period of rapid growth and interest in AI occurred during the years 1980- 1987. During this time, there were both breakthroughs in research, and additional government funding to support the researchers. Deep Learning techniques and use of Expert Systems became more popular, both of which allowed computers to learn from their mistakes and make independent decisions. It was during this time specifically in the year 1981 that the Japanese government allocated $850 million(over $2billion dollars in today’s money) to the Fifth Generation Computer project.
The years following 1987 saw a reduction of interest in AI and a decrease in research funding by the government. This period was known as the “AI Winter”, spanning from the year 1987-1993.
However, there was a significant amount of improvement and growth in the years 1993-2011, this era introduced AI into our everyday life via innovations such as the first Roomba and the first commercially available speech recognition software on Windows computers. It was during this time that Apple released Siri, the first popular virtual assistant in the year, 2011.
Artificial General Intelligence: 2012 Till Present
Trimming it down to the most recent development in AI, we have seen a surge in common used AI tools such as virtual assistants, search engines etc. This time period also popularized Deep Learning and Big Data. Notable landmarks to note over the years during this time in correspondence with the growth of AI is the creation of a humanoid robot named Sophia by Hanson Robotics in the year 2016 who was the first robot created with a realistic human appearance and the ability to see and replicate emotions, as well as to communicate. Facebook in 2016 also created two AI chatbots to convert and learn how to negotiate.
Till date, there has been a consistent improvement, growth and advancement in the world of AI, we are now more enlightened to the possibilities of AI so the question is What comes next for AI?
What comes Next for AI?
Well, we cannot entirely predict the future.
However, many leading experts talk about the possible futures of AI. So, we can expect to see further adoption of AI by businesses of all sizes, changes in workforce as more automation eliminates and creates jobs in equal measure, more robotics, autonomous vehicles and so much more.
