Separate the science from the hype
Artificial intelligence is the science of building machines that perform tasks which, when a human does them, we say require intelligence. Notice what that definition does NOT say: it does not say the machine thinks, feels or understands. It says the machine performs the task. That single distinction will protect you from both hype and fear for the rest of this course.
Every AI in existence today is narrow AI: it is excellent at one bounded task, like recognising faces, translating text or predicting the next word. General AI - a machine with human-like reasoning across any domain - does not exist yet. When headlines say 'AI can think', they are almost always describing a very good pattern-matcher.
Spam filters, Google Maps traffic estimates, TikTok and Facebook feeds, bank fraud alerts, Netflix recommendations, autocorrect, fingerprint unlock. You have been a daily AI user for years. This course simply moves you from passive user to intentional operator.
Machines performing tasks that would require intelligence in humans.
AI built for one bounded task; the only kind that exists today.
Rules-based software that follows fixed steps - not AI.
Finding regularities in data; the engine under most AI.
Tools: Pen and paper or Notes app
