The Future Of AI: Is Something Different This Time?

Hal 2000 of 2001 A Space Odyssey runs a deep space exploration vessel while simultaneously trying to kill its astronaut crew. The robots in Star Wars are our friends. Clearly, the idea of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been with us in pop culture for a while. But enthusiasm among scientists for AI's reality has actually waxed and waned strongly a number of times over the last half century. Right now, researchers are riding high on another wave of enthusiasm.