One of the most exciting and disruptive technologies of our time, artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming industries and how we live, work, and interact with the outside world. AI has impacted many facets of our daily lives, from self-driving cars and voice assistants to recommendation systems and facial recognition, generating important questions and piquing the interest of both professionals and regular people.
But as AI’s capabilities grow, so do the complications and false notions that surround this intriguing topic. It makes sense that people would want to know more about the inner workings of AI, its effects on society, and its ethical ramifications given the variety of myths and ambiguities that surround it.
What is artificial intelligence?
Simply explained, AI is a computer software that has been pre-programmed to assess and carry out tasks that are traditionally handled by human intelligence, like identifying a face or operating a vehicle. Some people might think it sounds like something straight out of science fiction, but artificial intelligence is not only for geeks or those who are always on the cutting edge of what’s hip.
Who uses it?
Some kind of AI is probably already a part of your daily life, even if you’re not aware of it. You are already use AI to simplify your life if your phone automatically completes your text or email messages, if you utilize an online chat window for customer service, or if your smart home assistant can identify your voice.
AI programs can also be a helpful tool for coming up with ideas or beginning research for homework assignments, work projects, or travel plans. While no one should claim AI-generated content as their own, it can be useful when gathering information and coming up with ideas for a project.
How worried should you be?
Like every potent technology, AI has benefits and drawbacks. If you’re concerned that AI will replace humans or take over the workforce, you can relax knowing that these tools don’t think like people and typically simply accomplish the tasks they have been programmed to do well. There are limits to what it can do, and since a lot of content produced by AI still requires human review and verification of correctness, this is a drawback.
An AI program could appear to engage with the data or queries users enter, but its output is still passive. It won’t challenge your presumptions and might even make up data to answer the questions. Anyone using AI must develop their critical thinking abilities.
As AI becomes more commonplace, it seems that our skill sets will change, much as they did as the internet became a commonplace aspect of life, rather than creating new jobs. While looking to employ it in your daily life, there are undoubtedly a lot of factors to take into account.
What are some common risks?
As the result is only as good as the input, research has demonstrated that AI programs are susceptible to prejudice. When AI models are trained on biased data, AI will repeat and perhaps even amplify this prejudice. Additionally, AI might give people inaccurate information on a certain subject just because that specific data is frequently found on several websites. People must carefully analyze and critically consider the output to avoid bias and false information, which are dangers. To avoid being taken advantage of, we must all be informed on AI breakthroughs.
Whether its businesses considering how to ethically utilize AI or schools developing regulations and educating kids about it, ethics is a crucial component of discussions around AI.
There are many tools available to promote this discussion among adults, students, and business leaders and to increase your knowledge of the rapidly developing field of AI. For ten years, the Telus Wise program has offered free educational programs and resources to assist people understand digital tools, including AI, and how to use them safely.
Learn more about Artificial Intelligence at https://newscanada.com/en/your-artificial-intelligence-questions-answered-136604
Reference: https://newscanada.com/
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