TWO KEY TERMS

◼ Artificial intelligence This is when machines or programs can perform tasks that are usually done by human beings. In simpler terms, AI was designed to think like humans.

Examples of artificial intelligence include smart assistants such as Apple’s Siri and self-driving cars. Robots that can assist with surgery or serve human beings, and computers that can beat humans at games are also examples, as is the global positioning system (GPS) you use on your phone or in your car and the software that recognises your facial features to unlock your smart devices.

◼ Machine learning The term refers to an element of artificial intelligence in which a machine learns through processing data over time to automatically improve its knowledge base without human intervention. As tech journalist Nick Heath puts it, “At a high level, machine learning is the process of teaching a computer system how to make accurate predictions when fed data.”

Examples are when you use YouTube and it gives you recommendations based on things you’ve liked or when Netflix suggests what you should view next based on what you’ve watched in the past.

All social-media platforms rely on machine learning to give you what they think you want to consume on their platform.