New artificial intelligence index tracks the emerging field

Since the term "artificial intelligence" (AI) was first used in print in 1956, the one-time science fiction fantasy has progressed to the very real prospect of driverless cars, smartphones that recognize complex spoken commands and computers that see. In an effort to track the progress of this emerging field, a Stanford-led group of leading AI thinkers called the AI100 has launched an index that will provide a comprehensive baseline on the state of artificial intelligence and measure technological progress in the same way the gross domestic product and the S&P 500 index track the U.S. economy and the broader stock market. "The AI100 effort realized that in order to supplement its regular review of AI, a more continuous set of collected metrics would be incredibly useful," said Russ Altman, a professor of bioengineering and the faculty director of AI100. "We were very happy to seed the AI Index, which will inform the AI100 as we move forward." The AI100 was set in motion three years ago when Eric Horvitz, a Stanford alumnus and former president of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, worked with his wife, Mary Horvitz, to define and endow the long-term study.