There has been so much talk these days about AI. For many, while it’s been in the works for a long time, it seems AI jumped on the stage just recently. But actually, it’s been a work-in-progress for a while now. Just think about Alexa and Siri and “Hey, Google,” as one commonplace example. Each of these AI-driven personal assistants are lot smarter than they use to be—and getting smarter all the time. What’s new is where once they just talked, they’re now writing. And that’s a major disrupter to be sure!
So, AI is a powerful tool—certainly, but it does have its limitations. Here are some things that AI can’t do:
- Think creatively. AI can be trained to generate creative content, but it doesn’t have the same level of creativity as humans. For example, an AI can write a poem, but it won’t be able to come up with a new and original idea for a poem.
- Understand context. AI can be trained to understand the meaning of words and phrases, but it doesn’t have the same understanding of context as humans. For example, an AI can understand the meaning of the sentence “The cat sat on the mat,” but it won’t be able to understand the context of the sentence, such as whether it’s a joke, a statement of fact, or a command.
- Apply common sense. AI can be trained to make decisions based on data, but it doesn’t have the same common sense as humans. For example, an AI can be trained to drive a car, but it won’t be able to make decisions like when to yield to pedestrians or when to change lanes.
- Be ethical. AI is still in its early stages of development, and it’s not clear how to program AI to be ethical. For example, an AI could be programmed to make decisions that are in the best interests of the company that created it, even if those decisions are harmful to others.
These are just a few of the limitations of AI. As AI continues to develop, these limitations may be overcome. However, it’s important to be aware of these limitations so that we can use AI responsibly.
