“The future is not about robots; it’s about the human element. It’s going to be like an era when technology was invented and people just naturally started making stuff. But now that we get into this day and age, I guess there is a huge difference… I guess the reason why we have so much to do with technology is actually because they created a need to have something to do with it, but also because they gave us a way to make them do things quicker and smarter than before.” — Sir Alan Moore
History and use of artificial intelligence in our lives have been around since the 1950s and 60s. The first major use of AI was electronic computers at MIT in the late 1960s, and has been changing and evolving throughout the last 50 years. This can be seen in various industries like automotive, medicine research, retail, education and healthcare, science, health sector, manufacturing, industrial machinery, food processing, and many more. Artificial Intelligence (AI) refers to machines which are capable of performing tasks which would normally require human intelligence but which can’t be carried out by a machine because of the limitations associated with AI. In general terms, AI is an area where computer programs (or software) are developed that enable artificial intelligence to perform the operations that would otherwise be performed by intelligent humans. Examples of these intelligent machines are Siri, Google Assistant, Cortana, Alexa, Microsoft Azure Machine Learning, IBM Watson, Amazon Rekognition, Apple A.I., OpenAI, Samsung BOT and many others. The majority of these machines or robots were designed for personal usage but are still used by millions of individuals all over the world.
The main advantages of using AI today for the improvement of humanity as outlined in the following sections are:
Artificial intelligence helps you learn, solve problems faster and do your job without any physical labor. You don’t need to hire new employees.
AI is also able to predict potential outcomes before they occur. For example it can tell you whether you will receive enough earnings to meet a mortgage payment when it comes due.
AI is used in everyday activities like self-driving cars, translation and language recognition, social networking, etc. People don’t really understand how Artificial Intelligence works but they know the benefits and applications and they also see the risks involved. If it is not carefully planned then it could lead to bad outcomes. So these days I try to keep my mind active by learning new things related to this emerging industry.
If there is one thing that has changed drastically with the developments of AI, the world. We are no longer dependent on natural resources like oil, coal etc. We have replaced these sources of energy with renewable technologies that emit power. Oil has its own disadvantages as well as being a fossil fuel. However, because of recent advancements made in the field of robotics, we are starting to explore alternative sources of energy. Alternative sources of energy can be obtained from wind, tides, waves and other water sources. These sources can be harnessed to generate electricity. On the other hand, solar panels, nuclear plants and batteries can be used for the generation of green energy. They are also becoming very affordable. All these sources of alternative energy are very vital but do we really understand what they are? Not many people really know what they are yet. As it happens, I myself came across my first robotics project where I built my own robot. The name of the robot is CogX which translates to “The Intelligent Robot”. There was also an opportunity to design another robotic companion called Robosapien that had the capability to learn about me. But I chose to build CogX because I didn’t want to be too involved in designing robotic companions. Although, robots aren’t everything and there are many different kinds of robots, in order to understand some important concepts in programming and AI, it would be a good idea to have mentors/teachers who teach you.
One aspect of life which has massively benefited from the use of Artificial Intelligence is health. Thanks to the development of sensors and machine learning, the detection of illnesses such as cancer, diabetes and glaucoma and Alzheimer’s disease, which the majority of people suffer from. AI has improved the diagnosis of diabetes and is very helpful for the identification of the symptoms which patients are required to identify. Some examples of diseases like Diabetes and Glaucoma can be detected almost instantly in patients. Patients can take their complaints to doctors immediately. According to WHO the worldwide number of patients suffering from diabetes has risen from 9.2 million in 1950 to nearly 38 million by 2015. Also according to World Health Organization, the diabetic population in the world rose by 24% between 1990 and 2018.
Another advantage of the use of AI is the reduction of hospital visits. Hospitalization for respiratory illness has risen significantly during past year. Due to new methods of transmission, the spread of airborne disease is decreasing steadily. The number of patients hospitalized for pneumonia in the United States increased from 717,000 in 1999 to 628,000 in 2012. The rise in pneumonia cases has led to an increase in the cost of treating the patient. According to Harvard University researchers, the COVID-19 pandemic caused more deaths due to pneumonia in comparison to influenza, which caused less mortality. Similarly, the number of hospital admissions during SARS and MERS outbreaks has jumped from 14,000 to over 55,000 as per Reuters report.
There are many challenges that come along with the creation of AI. One of the most common challenges or concerns is security. While AI has helped in saving lives and detecting diseases, it has also raised a lot of concern regarding privacy. Many people fear that the security of their data is compromised if all their private data are disclosed to the public. With the constant technological breakthroughs, many people tend to believe that sharing their information and data is going to lead to great things for the future economy. It might be beneficial in certain situations but the question arises once again, does the same kind of data used to create algorithms also mean that the person data is shared with the third-party who in turns would share their information with malicious intent or is it for the benefit of humanity and the greater community? I personally think that people should enjoy his/her right to his/her own information. I often feel threatened when I realize that my information, especially banking information, is not safe. Another challenge that often come up is bias. Sometimes AI has not only given us opportunities to help mankind a big deal but it has also taught us one important lesson. Algorithms do not always give correct answers. Human beings are much smarter than machines have let them discover what would be difficult for machines to discover when they are given the task. Machines in fact, as a whole, are quite capable of picking up a concept, and sometimes even analyzing something better or simpler. AI has not been perfect in this field, nor has it helped mankind in solving real-world problems. And that is precisely the point. The key goal for me is to help humans gain knowledge and experience regarding all aspects of Artificial Intelligence. By learning the basics of this upcoming field, I hope to find solutions to many issues or problems related to this emerging technology.
In conclusion Artificial Intelligence is not a threat or a tool that is going to replace humans in terms of decision making. At least it’s just a tool that has helped change humanity, help us learn and improve ourselves. Artificial intelligence has already been doing wonders. While there has been lots of efforts geared towards creating a solution to the problems and challenges we face now, there are still many problems that our society hasn’t solved yet. Our societies have tried to create laws that prevent citizens from becoming victims of cybercrime. Governments and law enforcement agencies also strive hard to prevent the misuse of information by government, corporate and non-government entities. But these measures have not stopped criminals from committing crimes. Instead, they are proving to be ineffective. AI has given us countless opportunities to explore other options. For the betterment of our society’s future, my advice to everyone would be to seek an education in Digital Technologies like Computer Science and Technology.
My next step will be to develop a website, www.deeplearning.ai, which will contain all my work related to Artificial Intelligence. My aim is to educate the world through content and education. I want to focus on providing practical information that makes people aware about artificial intelligence and how it could be applied on every industry. If I ever felt that the future is not about robots as many people say but rather it’s about the human element, I think I would start working on developing courses for all sorts of topics like mathematics and engineering.
If artificial intelligence is truly worth the hype, the real answer to this topic is not about robots. It’s not about replacing jobs but about enriching lives. That’s what Artificial Intelligence teaches us.
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