Before delving into the concept of artificial intelligence, let us first define intelligence-

Intelligence: The capability of learning and problem-solving. Webster’s dictionary provides this definition.

The most typical response is “to make computers intelligent so that they can behave intelligently!” However, the issue is how intelligent. How does one assess intelligence?

…as intelligent as humans. If computers can solve real-world issues by learning from prior experiences, they will be labeled “intelligent.”

As a result, AI systems are more general (rather than particular), can “think,” and are more adaptable.

Intelligence is made up of:

  • Reasoning
  • Learning
  • Problem Solving
  • Perception
  • Linguistic Intelligence

What is Artificial Intelligence?

According to John McCarthy, the inventor of artificial intelligence, it is “the science and engineering of creating intelligent machines, particularly clever computer programs.”

Artificial intelligence is a method of teaching a computer, a computer-controlled robot, or software to think intelligently in the same way as intelligent humans do.

Approaches of AI

There are four AI approaches:

  1. Acting humanly (The Turing Test approach): Alan Turing (1950) devised this approach. The logic behind this approach is that a computer passes the test if a human interrogator cannot tell whether the written replies are from a human or a machine after asking certain written questions
  2. Thinking Humanly (The cognitive modeling approach): The goal of this approach is to assess whether the machine thinks like a human.
  3. Thinking rationally (The “laws of thought” approach): The goal of this approach is to assess whether the computer thinks rationally, that is, with logical thinking.
  4. Acting rationally (The rational agent approach): The goal of this approach is to determine whether the computer operates logically, that is, with logical thinking.

Difference Between Strong and Weak AI

There are two categories of concepts in AI, notably weak AI and strong AI. Personal assistants, such as Google Assistant, Siri, and Alexa, are regarded as poor AI systems since they work within a narrow pre-defined range of functions. Then there are machines with their minds, capable of making independent judgments without human intervention. These programs might be called powerful AI. Let’s look at the major distinctions between strong and poor AI.

Weak AIStrong AI
Weak AI is essentially the view that intelligent behavior may be represented and exploited by computers to solve complicated issues.Strong AI is a hypothetical machine with human-like cognitive skills.
Weak AI refers to systems that are programmed to solve a wide variety of issues yet only perform a limited set of operations.Strong AI refers to machines that have their own minds and can think and do complicated tasks on their own.
Weak AI-powered machines lack independent minds.Strong AI-powered machines can demonstrate human-like cognitive capabilities.
Alexa and Siri are prime instances of weak AI applications.Strong AI is a speculative idea that does not yet exist in its complete form.
Difference between Strong and Weak AI

Philosophy of AI

While utilizing the capabilities of computer systems, human curiosity led him to ask, “Can a machine understand and behave like humans?”

Thus, the creation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) began with the goal of producing equivalent intelligence in robots to what we discover and value in humans.

History of Artificial Intelligence

Although the phrase “artificial intelligence” is not new, it has become a buzzword in recent years. In 1956, a group of avant-garde professionals from various backgrounds agreed to establish a summer AI research project. The project was led by four brilliant minds: John McCarthy (Dartmouth College), Marvin Minsky (Harvard University), Nathaniel Rochester (IBM), and Claude Shannon (Bell Telephone Laboratories).

The following is a brief history of artificial intelligence:

YearMilestone / Innovation
1923Karel Čapek’s play “Rossum’s Universal Robots” was the first time the term “robot” was used in English.
1943The neural network foundations have been established.
1945The name Robotics is used by Isaac Asimov, a Columbia University graduate.
1956The phrase “artificial intelligence” was introduced by John McCarthy. Demonstration of Carnegie Mellon University’s first operating AI software.
1964Danny Bobrow’s MIT dissertation demonstrated how computers could comprehend natural language.
1969Shakey was created by Stanford Research Institute scientists. A robot has movement and problem-solving abilities.
1979Stanford Cart, the world’s first computer-controlled autonomous vehicle, was constructed.
1990Significant examples in machine learning.
1997Garry Kasparov, the world chess champion at the time, was defeated by the Deep Blue Chess Program.
2000Interactive robot pets are now commercially available. Kismet, an expressive-faced robot, is on display at MIT.
2006AI first appeared in the business sphere in 2006. AI has been used by companies such as Facebook, Netflix, and Twitter.
2012Google released a “Google Now” function for Android apps that give users a forecast.
2018The IBM “Project Debater” disputed complicated themes with two professional debaters and fared admirably.
History of Artificial Intelligence

Application of AI

AI has dominated a variety of sectors, including –

  • Gaming: AI is important in strategic games such as chess, poker, tic-tac-toe, and so on, where the computer can consider a vast number of probable positions based on heuristic knowledge.
  • Natural Language Processing: Interacting with a machine that understands natural language spoken by people is conceivable.
  • Expert Systems: Some applications combine machine learning, software, and special data to provide reasoning and advice. They give consumers explanations and recommendations.
  • Vision Systems: These computer systems recognize, analyze, and comprehend visual input. As an example,
    • A spy plane captures images, which are then utilized to deduce spatial information or create a map of the region.
    • Doctors utilize clinical expert systems to diagnose patients.
    • Police utilize computer software that can match a criminal’s face to a stored portrait created by a forensic artist.
  • Speech Recognition: While a person speaks to it, certain intelligent systems are capable of hearing and interpreting the language in terms of sentences and their meanings. It can deal with various languages, slang phrases, background noise, changes in human sounds caused by cold, and so on.
  • Handwriting Recognition: The handwriting recognition program interprets text written with a pen on paper or with a stylus on a screen. It can identify letter forms and translate them into editable text.
  • Intelligent Robots: Human-assigned duties can be performed by robots. They are equipped with sensors that sense physical data from the outside environment, such as light, heat, temperature, movement, sound, bumps, and pressure. To demonstrate intelligence, they feature efficient CPUs, several sensors, and massive memory. Furthermore, they are capable of learning from their mistakes and adapting to new situations.

Advantages of Artificial Intelligence

The following are some of the primary benefits of artificial intelligence:

  • High Accuracy with fewer errors: AI devices or systems have fewer mistakes and are more accurate because they make judgments based on prior experience or information.
  • High-Speed: AI devices or systems have low mistake rates and great accuracy because they make judgments based on prior experience or knowledge.
  • High Reliability: AI robots are extremely dependable and can repeat the same activity with great precision several times.
  • Useful for risky areas: AI machines can be useful in situations where employing a person would be unsafe, such as defusing a bomb or researching the ocean below.
  • Digital Assistant: AI may be quite beneficial in providing digital assistants to consumers. For example, AI technology is now employed by numerous E-commerce websites to display items based on customer preferences.
  • Useful as a public utility: AI may be highly valuable for public utilities such as self-driving cars that make our journeys safer and more convenient, face recognition for security purposes, natural language processing to connect with humans in human language, and so on.

Disadvantages of Artificial Intelligence

Every technology has inherent drawbacks, and artificial intelligence is no exception. Despite being such a beneficial technology, it does have certain drawbacks that we must consider when developing an AI system. The following are some of the drawbacks of AI:

  • High Cost: AI hardware and software needs are quite expensive since they require a lot of upkeep to fulfill current world requirements.
  • Can’t Think Out of The Box: Even though AI is developing better robots, they cannot work outside the box since the robot will only accomplish the task for which it has been educated or designed.
  • No Feelings and Emotions: AI machines can be excellent performers, but since they lack emotion, they cannot build emotional attachments with humans and can sometimes be detrimental to users if adequate precautions are not followed.
  • Increase Dependency on Machines: People are becoming increasingly reliant on technology, and as a result, their mental capacities are deteriorating.
  • No Original Creativity: Although people are very creative and can envision new ideas, AI devices cannot match this capability of human intellect and cannot be creative or imaginative.