The Challenge of Defining AI
The first step in understanding AI is recognizing that our perception of it may be skewed. Popular culture—books, movies, and TV shows—often portrays AI as a sinister force intent on world domination, which hasn’t exactly helped clarify what AI really is.

But science fiction isn’t the only reason our view of AI is complicated. Humans naturally measure intelligence against ourselves, using our own abilities to learn, reason, and act as the standard. Yet intelligence isn’t unique to humans. Animals—from clever crows to problem-solving octopuses—demonstrate remarkable cognitive skills, and even slime molds can navigate mazes given enough time.

As we learn more about intelligence across species, we also see the diversity within human intelligence itself. One person may excel at public speaking but struggle with math, while another might be highly empathetic yet awkward at sports. Intelligence manifests in many specialized ways. Similarly, AI is not a single, universal capability—it consists of systems designed for specific tasks. To understand AI, we need to examine what it can do today, recognizing the variety of its abilities.