What is Machine Learning?

Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) and computer science that focuses on using data and algorithms to simulate the way humans learn, gradually increasing its accuracy. IBM has a rich history of machine learning. One of them, Arthur Samuel, is famous for coining the term "machine learning" in his research on the game of checkers. Robert Neely, a self-proclaimed checkers master, played the game on an IBM 7094 computer in 1962 and lost to the computer. This feat appears almost trivial in comparison to what can be done today, but it is regarded as a significant milestone in the field of artificial intelligence. Over the next two decades, data storage and processing technology will create some of the innovative products we know and love today, like the Netflix recommendation engine or self-driving cars.