Who Created Artificial Intelligence? The AI Evolution Explained

2025-03-02

n recent years, artificial intelligence has become a new reality in which we all live. Each of us has likely encountered AI to some extent, and many of us actively use various AI tools. In fact, it is probably almost impossible not to use AI today, given its widespread applications across numerous industries. In this article, we will explore how AI evolution has led to what we see today.

What is AI?

AI refers to computers and systems that can perform and mimicking human actions. This means they not only imitate human actions but are also able to understand and navigate their environment, making decisions based on it.

One of the key characteristics of AI is its ability to work with vast amounts of data that would be difficult for humans to process. Additionally, AI can process these large datasets at such high speeds that human analysis would likely never be able to keep up.

While AI is still often discussed in the context of replacing human resources, eliminating jobs, and controlling processes without human involvement, machine learning is creating positive value in the market, offering various benefits. These include increased efficiency in different sectors by automating repetitive tasks, replacing manual labour in manufacturing, improving decision-making in businesses, enhancing customer service conditions, and innovating in the entertainment industry.

When Did Artificial Intelligence Start?

The origins of AI evolution date back to 1950, with the names of Alan Turing and John McCarthy closely associated with its beginning. Essentially, the British mathematician Turing believed that machines could be far more powerful and surpass their own programming abilities at that time. He spread the idea that computing machines should be coded and work based on a program, which could then be expanded to enhance their functions.

Moreover, Turing developed a tool to assess whether a machine thinks like a human, the so-called imitation game, now known as the Turing test. Although there were no tools available at the time to prove Turing’s theory, he is still regarded as the conceptualizer of AI.

Another key figure, John McCarthy, a mathematics professor at Dartmouth College, in 1956 invited a group of researchers to a summer conference where the concept of a thinking machine was discussed, and during this conference, the term artificial intelligence was coined – now widely known around the world.

How Did AI Evolution Unfold Over the Decades?

The beginning of AI set the stage for the evolution of new technologies, sparking interest and creating AI associations. Each decade seemed to mark something significant in AI evolution:

1960s – Joseph Weizenbaum creates ELIZA, the first chatbot interacting with English speakers, and the first industrial robot is introduced.
1970s – Stanford Research Centre develops a mobile robot system with sensors and a TV camera.
1980s – Scientist Ernst Dickmanns invents the first autonomous vehicle – a Mercedes van equipped with a computer system and sensors to react to the environment.
2000s – Researchers at the University of Montreal introduce the Neural Probabilistic Language Model, laying out a methodology using neural networks.
2010s – Deep Blue wins the World Chess Championship, iPhone introduces the Siri virtual assistant, and research on neural networks progresses.

Final Thoughts

AI evolution continues to progress relentlessly, especially with the rise of generative AI. The world is closely following AI’s progress, with systems and tools now available for generating text, images, and videos. Chatbots like ChatGPT are in use, and we eagerly anticipate further AI advancements in fields such as quantum computing and artificial general intelligence.

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Sources: Coursera, Maryville University, TechTarget