AI... A term that resonates in the corridors of science, technology and media, provokes curiosity and questions, and carries with it promises of a different future. But what is AI? And what is his story? An interesting journey through time we dive into exploring the genesis and historical evolution of this field.
The tale begins in the 1950s, specifically in the summer of 1956 at Dartmouth University, United States of America, where elite scientists and researchers gathered at a historic conference called the "Dartmouth Conference on Artificial Intelligence." Here, the foundation stone of this fledgling science was laid, and the term "artificial intelligence" came to light by John McCarthy, an American computer scientist considered to be the father of this field, it was not just a coincidence, but the culmination of previous efforts and ideas that have been taking shape since the 1940s with the proposition of models of artificial neurons, and questions raised by Alan Turing, a British mathematician, about the possibility of "machine thinking."
In that early period, optimism and hope prevailed that machines that mimicked human mental abilities, such as learning, problem-solving and decision-making, could be built, Computer software has emerged capable of playing chess and solving minor mathematical issues, increasing enthusiasm and belief that real "intelligence" can be achieved in machines, But this optimism was soon met with great challenges, as expectations were higher than the technical possibilities available at the time. Researchers have encountered difficulties in representing complex human knowledge in computer software, and developing algorithms capable of dealing with factual problems, This has led to what is known as the "winter of artificial intelligence", a period of stagnation, disappointment and declining funding in this area.
But the thrust of the research was not completely extinguished, and efforts continued on a narrower scale, focusing on sub-areas such as expert systems, software that simulated human experience in a particular field, the 1980s saw a resurgence of interest in artificial intelligence, thanks to developments in computing and the increased power of processors, and the emergence of new technologies such as "machine learning", which relies on training machines on large amounts of data to learn from and improve their performance without direct human intervention.
As the third millennium began, AI entered a whole new phase, thanks to a massive data revolution, the evolution of cloud computing power and the emergence of "deep learning" technologies based on artificial neural networks, models inspired by the way the human brain works, These technologies have made a qualitative breakthrough in areas such as photo and speech recognition, natural language processing, auto self-driving, and many more. Artificial intelligence has become an integral part of our everyday lives, through smartphones, voice aids, search engines and various applications.
Today, we are witnessing rapid developments in this area, with the emergence of huge linguistic models capable of generating creative texts and answering complex questions, applications in the fields of medicine, education, industry, agriculture and others. However, significant challenges remain in this area, such as issues of ethics, privacy and security, and the impact of artificial intelligence on the labour market and society at large.
The journey of artificial intelligence continues, carrying with it many possibilities and challenges, and promises to change the shape of our world and the future of humanity, from just an idea in the minds of a group of scientists, artificial intelligence has become a driving force for change and innovation, and a story whose chapters are still being written today.