AI, or artificial intelligence, is huge right now. "Unsolvable" problems are being solved, billions of dollars are being invested, and Microsoft even hired Common to tell you how great its AI is with spoken word poetry. As with any new technology, it can be hard to cut through the hype. I spent years doing research in robotics and UAVs and "AI," but even I've had a hard time keeping up. In recent years I've spent a lot of time learning to answer even some of the most basic questions like: I know I'm not alone in wondering these things.

British physicist Professor Stephen Hawking at the inauguration of Cambridge University's artificial intelligence (AI) centre on Wednesday said that AI will either "transform" society or destroy it. "Success in creating AI could be the biggest event in the history of our civilisation...but it could also be the last unless we learn how to avoid the risks," he said.