What is AI

Artificial intelligence is the topic that has captured the attention of people worldwide. It appears that we are entering a new era, commonly referred to as the age of AI. So, let’s begin by providing a straightforward and formal explanation of AI. “AI involves the emulation of human intelligence in machines, which are designed to reason and imitate human actions.”

Consequently, AI was created with the purpose of assisting and resembling humans in their behaviors. Numerous companies are eagerly adopting AI technology with the aims of minimizing operational expenses, enhancing productivity, and driving revenue growth. Undoubtedly, AI is revolutionizing our way of life.

 Allow me to present you with a fascinating statistic on AI, sourced from Statista. This statistic pertains to the projected global revenues stemming from the AI market spanning the years 2016 to 2025.

As we find ourselves in the year 2020, Artificial Intelligence stands as a method aimed at enabling machines to function and behave akin to humans. In recent times, AI has achieved this objective by developing a wide array of machines and robots, which are now employed across various domains such as robotics, marketing, healthcare, business analytics, and numerous others.

Now, let’s delve into the categorization of AI, as it can be classified into several types. The main categorization revolves around two primary divisions, which are based on capabilities and the functionality of AI.

Let us now proceed with exploring the types of AI based on capabilities. Under this categorization, artificial intelligence can be divided into three distinct types:

1. Narrow Artificial Intelligence or weak Artificial Intelligence
2. General Artificial Intelligence
3. Strong Artificial Intelligence

1. Narrow Artificial Intelligence

This particular type of AI is characterized by its ability to intelligently perform specific tasks. However, its capabilities are limited to the specific field or task it has been trained for. Examples falling under this category include Facebook’s face recognition, self-driving cars, and voice assistants.

2. General Artificial Intelligence

This type of AI possesses the ability to efficiently carry out intellectual tasks similar to humans. However, as of now, there is no existing system that can truly achieve general Artificial Intelligence, where machines can seamlessly perform any task just like humans. Researchers worldwide are currently dedicated to the development of machines capable of achieving general Artificial Intelligence.

3. Strong Artificial Intelligence

Strong AI represents a level of intelligence in systems where machines have the potential to exceed human intelligence. However, it is important to note that Strong AI remains a theoretical concept within the field of artificial intelligence. The development of such systems in practicality continues to be a monumental and transformative undertaking.

Types of AI based on functionality: In this categorization, AI is divided into four types:

1. Reactive machine
2. Limited memory
3. Theory of mind
4. Self-awareness

1. Reactive machine

These represent the fundamental types of Artificial Intelligence, devoid of any memory or ability to retain past experiences for future endeavors. These machines solely focus on the present circumstances and react accordingly by determining the best possible course of action. IBM Deep Blue AI is an example that falls under this category.

2. Limited memory

Limited memory AI possesses the capability to store a certain amount of data or past experiences for a temporary duration. A prime example of this can be observed in self-driving cars. These vehicles can retain recent information such as the speed of nearby cars, the distance between vehicles, speed limits, and other relevant details in order to navigate the road effectively.

3. Theory of mind

This category of AI aims to comprehend human emotions, understand individuals, their beliefs, and engage in social interactions similar to humans. Although this type of AI is yet to be fully developed, researchers are actively exerting significant efforts and making advancements in order to create machines with such capabilities.

4. Self-awareness

The future of Artificial Intelligence envisions machines with self-awareness, possessing superintelligence along with their own sentiments, consciousness, and self-awareness. However, it is crucial to note that self-awareness in Artificial Intelligence is currently a theoretical concept and does not exist in reality.

Domains of AI

The various domains within the field of AI, commonly referred to as branches of AI, encompass a wide range of methods. These include linguistics, vision, planning, robotics, bias, decision-making, scientific applications, and natural language processing, among others.

Let’s gather knowledge about several significant subfields within the realm of Artificial Intelligence. AI can be divided into six main subfields:

1. Machine learning
2. Deep learning
3. Expert systems
4. Robotics
5. Natural language processing
6. Fuzzy logic

1. Machine learning

Machine learning, an application of Artificial Intelligence, enables systems to automatically learn and improve from experience without the need for explicit programming. This technology finds application in various domains, such as providing personalized viewing suggestions on platforms like Netflix or ranking posts on social media platforms like Twitter.

2. Deep learning

Deep learning, a subset of machine learning within the field of AI, involves the use of neural networks that can learn from unstructured or unlabeled data in an unsupervised manner. It is also referred to as deep neural networks or deep neural learning. This powerful technique finds applications in various areas such as autonomous driving, voice assistants, and even automatic handwriting generation.

3. Expert systems

An expert system is a computer system designed to mimic the decision-making capabilities of a human expert. These systems are created to tackle intricate problems by employing reasoning based on knowledge repositories, predominantly expressed as if-then rules rather than traditional procedural code.

MYCIN and DENDRAL PXDES are among the notable applications of expert systems. MYCIN aids in the identification of different bacteria responsible for acute infections. On the other hand, DENDRAL is employed in chemical analysis for predicting molecular structures.

4. Robotics

Robotics is a multidisciplinary field of research that combines computer science and engineering. It encompasses the development, construction, operation, and utilization of robots. The primary objective of robotics is to create intelligent machines that can provide assistance to humans in their daily activities while ensuring safety for all.

5. Natural language processing

Natural Language Processing (NLP) is a subfield of linguistics, computer science, information engineering, and Artificial Intelligence. It focuses on the interaction between computers and human language. NLP encompasses various applications such as speech recognition, chatbots, and text classification, among others.

6. Fuzzy logic

Fuzzy logic is a computing approach that operates on “degrees of truth” instead of the conventional “true or false” (1 or 0) Boolean logic that modern computers are built upon. It finds application in various domains, including satellite altitude control, intelligent highway systems, and traffic control, among others.

Applications of AI

Now let’s see some of the interesting applications of AI:

1. Alphago

AlphaGo is a computer program specifically designed to play the ancient board game, Go. It was initially developed by DeepMind Technologies, which was subsequently acquired by Google. In March 2016, AlphaGo achieved a remarkable feat by defeating Lee Sedol, an 18-time World Champion, in a five-game match, with a final score of 4 games to 1 in favor of AlphaGo. Following this success, AlphaGo Zero was introduced, surpassing its predecessor by winning with an impressive final score of 18 games to 1 in favor of AlphaGo Zero.

2. Google duplex

Google Duplex is an AI assistant that enables select users to make restaurant reservations over the phone. However, rather than the user personally conversing with the restaurant employee, Google Duplex communicates on their behalf using a voice that closely resembles that of a human.

3. Twitter AI

In an effort to combat inappropriate and racist content on its platform, Twitter has implemented Artificial Intelligence technology. This action comes as authorities in the UK and Germany introduce stricter measures and penalties to combat fake news, hate speech, and illegal content on social media. Within the first half of 2017, Twitter successfully removed nearly 300,000 terrorist accounts.

4. JP Morgan Coin

JP Morgan recently revealed the creation and implementation of their new software, COIN (Contract Intelligence), which streamlines the document review process for a specific category of contracts. This software is capable of reviewing a significant number of contracts within seconds, a task that previously consumed over 360,000 man-hours for lawyers.

5. Tesla Autopilot

Autopilot incorporates advanced safety and convenience features that aim to assist drivers with the most demanding aspects of driving. It enables your vehicle to autonomously handle acceleration, steering, and braking while remaining within its designated lane. It’s important to note that current autopilot functionalities require active driver supervision and do not render the vehicle fully autonomous. 

6. IBM Watson

Watson, developed by IBM in 2013, is a computer system equipped with the capability to answer questions presented in natural language. IBM recently disclosed that the first commercial application of the Watson software system would involve utilization management decisions and lung cancer treatment in New York City.