TERMINATOR OF THE FUTURE, TODAY
Written by: Jake O’Connell
What if a computer, designed to emulate the human capacity for thought, could help us find a cure for cancer or predict the stock market? The role of artificial intelligence (AI) will arguably become a significant factor in the majority of society’s everyday processes. AI involves the development of computer systems to complete tasks which would normally need a human’s touch. This process often involves machine learning wherein computer programs literally teach themselves to grow and expand without explicit human programming. Examples include facial recognition, speech recognition, dynamic decision-making, and much much more.
A common low-level AI you might be familiar with is characters in video games such as Call of Duty who respond to plot developments, investigate sounds, and change behaviors in relation to the player’s actions. Another example is Apple’s personal assistant, Siri, representing an example of artificial intelligence many people use regularly.
As titillating as Siri is, however, the future of AI and its application across industries is of great interest. For this reason, large companies including Facebook are working on developing products and special projects based on AI. Elon Musk, the visionary behind Tesla and SpaceX is also one of the leaders in AI research and is working with a company called OpenAI to actively develop and understand where computing intelligence is trending.
On Tuesday November 8, at the Web Summit technology conference, Facebook presented a breakthrough in its AI development. The company’s new mobile app allows users to use new styles on videos with mostly local processing, eliminating the need for server side activity on Facebook’s end. Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer said in a keynote, “…the real breakthrough here is being able to train and build models on a big server…and deploy them directly to your pocket so you can run them in real time wherever you are. That is the exciting future of AI.”
Nevertheless, while Facebook executives are satisfied with the new app, they have strong aspirations for the future. Schroepfer went on to say, “…when computers have common sense they can interact with us in better, more natural ways, from surfacing the most relevant information for us and assisting us with tasks to enabling whole new ways for people to connect” (Kharpal).
Kharpal, A. (2016, November 08). Facebook shows off a feature it says is a big breakthrough in artificial intelligence. Retrieved November 07, 2016.