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Artificial Intelligence

The slow-burn rise in AI

According to The Economist, the term artificial intelligence was first used in 1956 at an academic gathering in Dartmouth College in the US when John McCarthy, a young researcher, wanted to kickstart a discussion about “how to make machines use language, [and] form abstractions and concepts” to enable them to “solve the kinds of problems now reserved for humans”. Despite significant debate, not much happened over the following 50-60 years. By the 1990s however scientists had begun developing software-based neural networks, like those in the brain. These networks can learn by being exposed to vast datasets. Connections between neurons known as weights are adjusted to produce appropriate outputs, a process known as training. The rise of computing power using graphic processing units (GPUs) initially designed for the gaming industry, boosted the efficiency of these neural networks. In 2012 the use of additional neuron layers prompted use of the term deep learning. Trained networks were at this stage being used to identify images with one-word tags, with over 80% accuracy.

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