DescriptionThere are many definitions of artificial general intelligence. Some refer to it as a “super intelligence,” “intelligent computer technology,” or “artificial intelligence.”
Others like to emphasize its potential use as a powerful intervention to the social, political, and technological landscapes of tomorrow. Some call it the “singularity” of technology.
What Is Artificial General Intelligence?
Artificial general intelligence refers to the ability of a machine-learning algorithm to learn, without human intervention, what a human would call “natural intelligence.”
It’s a primary goal of some artificial intelligent research and also a frequent topic in futurist and science-fiction circles.
In short, it’s the ability for machines to exhibit the same human qualities in complex environments – things like, for example, emotions, culture, intellect, etc.
1. Emotions
Humans’ emotional intelligence has been one of the most coveted intellectual properties of all.
People want machines that can feel, reason, and so on. But while the ability to feel or reason logically is necessary for humans, it is a much more complicated trait for a machine.
Computers can reason, but they can’t feel or understand emotions – which makes them unsuitable for emotional intelligence projects.
2. Intellect
Machines have the natural curiosity, thirst for knowledge, and thirst for experience that humans have. Machines could become more intelligent over time through artificially intelligent software that humans could design, but they won’t ever become smarter than humans by themselves.
Artificial intelligence could improve machine-learning applications to aid people in understanding visual search engine results, or better understand content in web pages, but humans will always be better at reasoning and discovering new things.
3. Culture
Humans are visual beings, which means they process data through sight and smell. A computer that can process data without emotion or prejudice would likely fail as an artificial general intelligence system because many people would object to the machine’s biases, such as its fear of dogs or of black Americans. Humans could overcome these objections by making sure the data is filtered to be inclusive of the types of people who will most likely use the machine.
4. Real-world Experience
The quality and quantity of real-world experience an AI machine has been a critical factor. If the system hasn’t been constrained to work specifically with humans, then it probably lacks the empathy or the understanding of the complex world that we live in.
Humans can solve many of the problems that a machine might see as unsolvable in a way that a purely ad-robot cannot. Therefore, if the system is to be considered truly intelligent, it should be able to handle various situations from a human’s point of view.
5. Natural Intelligence
Most artificial, general intelligence systems are programmed to perform on a pre-established knowledge base.
However, most people don’t possess the knowledge base that would allow them to work with highly advanced robotic assistant, let alone artificial intelligence supercomputer.
In order for an AI to accomplish its goals, it must learn how to create and manipulate new knowledge through natural means.
Humans are capable of this type of learning, so an artificial agent will need to either be taught how to do it or be wired with data that allows it to do so.
6. Human Interaction
Many experts believe that artificially intelligent assistants will never be able to have a conversation with a real person, much less hold a deep conversation with a user at a work level.
To keep an ai conversation human-like, it needs to be able to mimic various behaviors that we do naturally, such as body language and tone of voice.
Additionally, an agent must understand how to interact with its environment, and not just one type of data. The best agents understand both social and technological cues that a user may use to communicate with it.
In essence, an artificial general intelligence will need to learn how to “think like” a user, in order to fully function as a member of the human community.
