Artificial Intelligence versus Machine Learning: Explained

Machine learning and artificial intelligence are often used interchangeably, but they are two very different things. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a broad field that has been around for decades -- it's the technology behind Siri and Alexa. Machine Learning (ML), on the other hand, is a subset of AI that uses statistical techniques to allow computers to learn without being explicitly programmed with rules or instructions. Therefore, you can see that machine learning and artificial intelligence aren't interchangeable terms; rather they're related fields in computer science that both utilize mathematics and statistics to create intelligent behavior from machines. To better understand the difference between the two, think of it this way: AI is a toaster that can make toast; ML is an algorithm where you tell the toaster how dark you want your toast and when.