Dr. Dean Anthony Gratton is a technology influencer, analyst, and futurist. He has authored several books and many contentious columns dispelling the rumours, gossip and hype surrounding new technology. Dean has worked within the wireless and telecommunications R&D industry as a software engineer and a solution architect. He has developed new products and created architectures for the consumer and industry to include the IoT, Big Data and Industry 4.0 (IIoT); the Smart Home & Cities, and the Smart Metering sectors. His wireless research work has been patented.   We have an uncensored belief in something we have not entirely understood. Human-like Cognition in a Computer This is a sentiment gathered from many years working within an industry always eager to develop the next big thing. A certain excitement and momentum combine into some kind of whirlwind, where often concepts can be typically taken out of context and exaggerated. If I go back to the original conception of AI in 1955 at Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, Dr John McCarthy and his team of research engineers, who originally conceived the term ‘artificial intelligence,’ have since been collectively recognised as the founding fathers of AI. Today, artificial intelligence is assistive technology, and it […]

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been bandied around for the last few decades or so and, I'm sure, most of us are still wondering: What exactly is this? So, will we be faced with an army of Terminator-like humanoids who will reign terror across the world? Will we witness "I, Robot"-like humanoids attending to our homecare needs – you know, washing, ironing, cooking and the like? Nah, I already have a wife that's dutifully doing that. Okay, stop – I know I shouldn't go there – just one small footnote though: My wife, Sarah, isn't remotely domesticated, although she does cook once in a while!

In last month's column, "Artificial intelligence: I think therefore I am?," I felt I only scratched the surface of what we understand to be artificial intelligence (AI) and, in this month's post, I want to expand my thoughts a little further. So, last month, I suggested that what we understand today as "AI" is nothing more than clever programming and smart technology and, I dare say, that's largely true, despite others suggesting otherwise. We don't have thinking machines, since software engineers have programmed our technology to behave in a pre-determined manner, along with predefined behaviors and outcomes. You may recall, over a bottle of red, I presented the philosophical conjecture provided by René Descartes and the Scottish philosopher George Campbell's work surrounding their rationale regarding the separation of the mind and body.

So, this is my third column delving into what I believe is the over-hyped and often misunderstood subject of artificial intelligence (AI). Firstly, I'll briefly paraphrase what I mentioned in my previous posts and, that is, what we understand today as AI is nothing more than clever programming and smart technology. In my first post, I suggested that engineers have developed software and devised hardware to alleviate the mundaneness of routine activities, such as on the factory floor; created smart sensors to determine the best time to plant seeds and harvest and, of course, we have a number of sensors that can predict weather patterns; there are also engineers who have developed technology that can assess images of patients better than physicians when determining breast cancer, for example. As a former software engineer, I would similarly develop algorithms and functions that would seek patterns in data where, based on the data processed, I would define expected behaviors, outcomes and actions – this is not "intelligence" – it's just clever programming and smart technology. How do we create an intelligent entity?

In last month's column, "Artificial intelligence: I think therefore I am?," I felt I only scratched the surface of what we understand to be artificial intelligence (AI) and, in this month's post, I want to expand my thoughts a little further. So, last month, I suggested that what we understand today as "AI" is nothing more than clever programming and smart technology and, I dare say, that's largely true, despite others suggesting otherwise. We don't have thinking machines, since software engineers have programmed our technology to behave in a pre-determined manner, along with predefined behaviors and outcomes. You may recall, over a bottle of red, I presented the philosophical conjecture provided by René Descartes and the Scottish philosopher George Campbell's work surrounding their rationale regarding the separation of the mind and body.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been bandied around for the last few decades or so and, I'm sure, most of us are still wondering: What exactly is this? So, will we be faced with an army of Terminator-like humanoids who will reign terror across the world? Will we witness "I, Robot"-like humanoids attending to our homecare needs – you know, washing, ironing, cooking and the like? Nah, I already have a wife that's dutifully doing that. Okay, stop – I know I shouldn't go there – just one small footnote though: My wife, Sarah, isn't remotely domesticated, although she does cook once in a while!