6 Amazing Advances in AI That You Won’t Believe
2016 was an exciting year in the world of AI, with tons of new advancements that are going to keep changing the industry in major ways as we move forward. Here are some of the most exciting AI advances of 2016 that will keep you on your toes as we head into 2017 and beyond.
1) IBM Watson started providing medical diagnosis
IBM Watson is a technology that many people have heard of, but few know what it actually does. IBM Watson provides solutions for various industries, including healthcare. In 2016, IBM Watson partnered with WellPoint to provide medical diagnosis and treatment recommendations. As you can see from the video below, this could be a huge step forward in the world of medicine.
2) Google DeepMind learned how to play Atari video games like a pro
In August, Google’s DeepMind team announced that their artificial intelligence (AI) program AlphaGo had mastered the ancient Chinese board game Go. This was no small feat: a computer beat a human at Go for the first time back in 1997, but it required enormous amounts of computing power to do so. Fast forward to last week: AlphaGo made headlines again after it beat 18-time world champion Lee Sedol four games to one.
3) Virtual assistants like Siri and Cortana got smarter
We’ve come a long way from the days of punch cards and green screens. The latest generation of virtual assistants can answer questions, set alarms, and even control your home thermostat. And with the advent of Siri for Mac OS X El Capitan, Cortana for Android devices, and Google Now on Chrome, these virtual assistants are more powerful than ever.
4) Robots joined our workforce
The robots of the future will work alongside humans to share tasks and help out when they’re needed. Robots are already being used in many industries, but the field most impacted by them is manufacturing. In a recent study, it was found that Chinese factories using industrial robots boosted productivity by an average of 25%. This means that more goods could be produced with less labor costs and fewer accidents.
5) Autonomous vehicles started taking over our streets
Autonomous vehicles started taking over our streets in 2016. In the US, self-driving cars hit the roads for the first time this year. These vehicles are designed to handle all of the driving functions and monitor their surroundings with sensors and cameras so that a human driver isn’t necessary. Some experts predict that these cars will make up 50% of new car sales by 2025.
6) Some say we’re on the verge of another industrial revolution
It seems like just about every day, we hear more and more about artificial intelligence (AI) making huge advances. The idea of AI, a computer system that can reason like a human does and simulate intelligent behavior, is nothing new, but for the past few years these systems have been making rapid strides towards increasing their capabilities. Some are even suggesting that we’re on the verge of another industrial revolution–a digital one–that would forever change how humans interact with machines.
