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What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a term coined in 1955 by John McCarthy, Stanford's first faculty member in AI, who described it as "the science and engineering of making intelligent machines." Today it is a broad term for computer systems that can perform tasks with human-like intelligence, such as understanding language, recognizing images, learning from data, reasoning, and making decisions. Modern AI often works by finding patterns in large amounts of data and using those patterns to generate predictions or responses. It can be narrow (good at a specific task) or more general-purpose, like today’s large language models that can handle many tasks.

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) mentioned at Stanford HAI

Explore Similar Terms

Machine Learning (ML) | AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) | Deep Learning

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Enroll in a Human-Centered AI Course

This HAI program covers technical fundamentals, business implications, and societal considerations.
‘We are Stanford’: Open Minds Event Honors Staff
Stanford Report
Mar 31
Media Mention

Stanford University President Jon Levin highlights Stanford’s pivotal role in shaping the future of AI, pointing to Stanford HAI as a leader in advancing its ethical development and deployment.

‘We are Stanford’: Open Minds Event Honors Staff

Stanford Report
Mar 31

Stanford University President Jon Levin highlights Stanford’s pivotal role in shaping the future of AI, pointing to Stanford HAI as a leader in advancing its ethical development and deployment.

Ethics, Equity, Inclusion
Media Mention
How Can AI Support Language Digitization and Digital Inclusion?
Juan N. Pava, Thomas S. Mullaney, Caroline Meinhardt, Audrey Gao, Diyi Yang
Deep DiveFeb 26
White Paper

This white paper analyzes the varying ways AI tools can advance language digitization work, and provides recommendations for responsibly realizing the potential of AI in supporting the digital inclusion of digitally disadvantaged languages.

How Can AI Support Language Digitization and Digital Inclusion?

Juan N. Pava, Thomas S. Mullaney, Caroline Meinhardt, Audrey Gao, Diyi Yang
Deep DiveFeb 26

This white paper analyzes the varying ways AI tools can advance language digitization work, and provides recommendations for responsibly realizing the potential of AI in supporting the digital inclusion of digitally disadvantaged languages.

Ethics, Equity, Inclusion
International Affairs, International Security, International Development
Natural Language Processing
White Paper
Who Decides How America Uses AI in War?
Curtis Langlotz, Amy Zegart, Michele Elam, Jennifer King, Russ Altman
Mar 30
News
image of drones connected by digital net

As artificial intelligence becomes central to national security, experts grapple with a technology that remains unpredictable, unregulated, and increasingly powerful.

Who Decides How America Uses AI in War?

Curtis Langlotz, Amy Zegart, Michele Elam, Jennifer King, Russ Altman
Mar 30

As artificial intelligence becomes central to national security, experts grapple with a technology that remains unpredictable, unregulated, and increasingly powerful.

image of drones connected by digital net
News
Toward Responsible AI in Health Insurance Decision-Making
Michelle Mello, Artem Trotsyuk, Abdoul Jalil Djiberou Mahamadou, Danton Char
Quick ReadFeb 10
Policy Brief

This brief proposes governance mechanisms for the growing use of AI in health insurance utilization review.

Toward Responsible AI in Health Insurance Decision-Making

Michelle Mello, Artem Trotsyuk, Abdoul Jalil Djiberou Mahamadou, Danton Char
Quick ReadFeb 10

This brief proposes governance mechanisms for the growing use of AI in health insurance utilization review.

Healthcare
Regulation, Policy, Governance
Policy Brief
Stop Telling AI Your Secrets - 5 Reasons Why, And What To Do If You Already Overshared
ZD Net
Mar 25
Media Mention

"The ultimate problem is that you just can't control where the information goes, and it could leak out in ways that you just don't anticipate," says HAI Privacy and Data Policy Fellow Jennifer King.

Stop Telling AI Your Secrets - 5 Reasons Why, And What To Do If You Already Overshared

ZD Net
Mar 25

"The ultimate problem is that you just can't control where the information goes, and it could leak out in ways that you just don't anticipate," says HAI Privacy and Data Policy Fellow Jennifer King.

Regulation, Policy, Governance
Generative AI
Media Mention
Response to OSTP's Request for Information on Accelerating the American Scientific Enterprise
Rishi Bommasani, John Etchemendy, Surya Ganguli, Daniel E. Ho, Guido Imbens, James Landay, Fei-Fei Li, Russell Wald
Quick ReadDec 26
Response to Request

Stanford scholars respond to a federal RFI on scientific discovery, calling for the government to support a new “team science” academic research model for AI-enabled discovery.

Response to OSTP's Request for Information on Accelerating the American Scientific Enterprise

Rishi Bommasani, John Etchemendy, Surya Ganguli, Daniel E. Ho, Guido Imbens, James Landay, Fei-Fei Li, Russell Wald
Quick ReadDec 26

Stanford scholars respond to a federal RFI on scientific discovery, calling for the government to support a new “team science” academic research model for AI-enabled discovery.

Sciences (Social, Health, Biological, Physical)
Regulation, Policy, Governance
Response to Request