One of the most talked about subjects in recent years is artificial intelligence. While a large part of researchers and scholars defend the development of AI technology, many others fear what theadvance could bring about for humanity.
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, for example, believes that artificial intelligence, if it does not go through a regulatory process, will become a threat to humans. Physicist Stephen Hawking also has a similar stance: for him, people are at serious risk of having their intelligence overcome by machines.
A technological term that is increasingly mentioned around is “machine learning””. It is easy to deduce that technology is about machines and systems capable of acquiring new knowledge on their own, but many people still do not know, exactly what machine learning is , how it came about, in what applications it is applied and what is its potential for the future of technology in general.
The beginning of everything
It all started in 1959 with artificial intelligence pioneer Arthur Samuel, an MIT engineer who coined the term “machine learning” that same year, describing the concept as “a field of study that gives computers the ability to learn without being programmed to do so”. At the time, Samuel was working on a project to create an autonomous machine with these characteristics.
Arthur Samuel in the 1950s (Reproduction: Disclosure)
But it was only with the advent of the Internet that machine learning began to take shape, since, with so much information collected and stored on the web, it was necessary to create ways to organize this gigantic content in an automated way – and one of the pillars of machine learning is precisely the analysis of data in order to detect patterns.
Read: Google’s ongoing artificial intelligence applications
Big Data important role in machine learning and artificial intelligence
The tons of data that is obtained through social networks can be accessed by search engines and even by smartphone microphones and cameras. Increasingly intelligent algorithms scan this gigantic amount of information and, once patterns are discovered, systems are able to make predictions based on those patterns.
A practical example that is already part of the daily life of many people is the suggestions of products that appear on websites and social networks. Have you noticed that, more and more, products advertised to you are exactly what you wanted, or even items that you didn’t even know existed, but that meet a specific need? This is machine learning coming into action, indicating products for your consumption based on your online habits and preferences.
Machine learning also works efficiently in artificial intelligence applications that display routes in traffic, such as Google Maps, for example, or even in anti-SPAM email filters and even in bank security systems. And, as this technology still has a lot of growth ahead, the thing only tends to grow, being applied in an increasing number of systems that are part of our day-to-day life.
Read: How Artificial Intelligence Predicts Trading Market
Beyond machine learning
Something that is already happening is the creation of so-called neural networks, developed by computer scientists who use machine learning to simulate the functioning of the human brain artificially. And that already falls into the field of artificial intelligence, which provides machines and systems with the ability to perform tasks in an intelligent and autonomous way, using machine learning for their improvement.
From now on, we will see machine learning and artificial intelligence being applied in novelties that have the potential to radically transform our society, as well as the way we live, consume, transport and communicate. An example that is already around on some cities (Beta), and that is knocking on our door is the autonomous vehicle, which does not require a human driver to drive through the cities. And, although this future worthy of a science fiction film may cause fear in many people, the transformation caused by these innovative technologies is inevitable, leaving us to welcome it with open arms.
Read: Top Chrome extensions to improve productivity
In any case, the truth, at least for now, is that AI research has yielded impressive results in several areas. And the best news is that artificial intelligence is not inaccessible to the general public. In addition to smartphone virtual assistants, several labs provide samples of what their smart machines are capable of. Want to discover some platforms that use AI and have some fun? Check out the list we’ve prepared for you below.
AutoDraw
Using machine learning , AutoDraw, from Google, one of many artificial intelligence companies, allows users to create professional drawings even if they don’t have any drawing skills. From a few doodles, the application decipher what the user is trying to reproduce and suggest some options, which can be replaced according to the designer’s preference. The works can even be shared on social networks or downloaded on any device.
AI Duet
How about making a piano duet with a bot? Also developed by Google, AI Duet is a platform on which the user can risk playing a song on a virtual piano and be answered by artificial intelligence. From the notes played by the user, Google’s AI identifies the melodic patterns and also plays, as if it were actually part of a duet.
FaceApp
The famous photo editing app, FaceApp, went viral three years ago because of its transformation skills. For those who do not know, the possibility of changing the appearance of users, making them older, younger and even of the opposite sex, happens thanks to neural networks, which are able to identify the characteristics of the human face and apply the selected modifications by the user.
Giorgio Cam
How about checking out some musical compositions made by Google’s artificial intelligence from photographs taken by you? Giorgio Cam recognizes the images of objects placed in front of the smartphone or computer and composes songs describing and making connections with what was shown. All of this is possible due to an image recognition API.
Quick, Draw!
If you like drawing games, probably Quick, Draw! will please you. Also developed by Google, the tool is basically a guessing game in the style of a board game.
While the user must make predefined drawings in 20 seconds, artificial intelligence tries to discover what is being drawn.
SimSimi
SimSimi is ideal for those who are feeling alone or want to get a little distracted. The application allows users to have an artificial intelligence conversation in the form of a chat on various subjects.
The bot really makes it look like the user is talking to someone else, surprising the responses, which are quite consistent. To protect children, the app asks the user to set the permission for the type of words used during the conversation.
Read: How Can Artificial Intelligence be Used in Education
Thing Translator
Thing Translator works as a very interesting and accurate translation tool. In it, artificial intelligence is able to accurately recognize objects, including revealing the names of images shown by the smartphone or computer camera in different languages.
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