AI’s Promise & Peril

The rise of AI, artificial intelligence, is a major development in human history. Its ramifications are profound. What is it exactly? AI provides a computer program with the ability to think and learn on its own. It is a simulation of human intelligence into machines to do things that normally humans do. A government advisory committee states that the emergence of AI as a dominant technological force has brought with it a wave of transformative possibilities for society ranging from medical breakthroughs to driverless cars to greater efficiency. However, potential dangers posed by unregulated AI range from biases in decision-making algorithms to massive unemployment, deep fakes, privacy issues, abuse of civil liberties, and even global security. AI is a classic double-edged sword, a mix of promise and peril.

Recorded at King’s College.