What is AI?

Artificial intelligence, abbreviated AI, is a technology in which computers simulate human patterns of speech and thought, generally by combing through content found online. The systems take in and analyze large amounts of this data for patterns, and in this way, can generate text mimicking that of a person’s, create images that mirror those created organically or produce other types of media based on online content.

Fueled by algorithms and consistencies found online, AI is now used in applications in myriad fields, including medical diagnosis, facial recognition software in security and chatbots in customer services.

A common AI-powered tool used by educators and in other fields is an AI chatbot, like ChatGPT, which uses human speech patterns found online to imitate lifelike conversation-style responses to seemingly any prompt. It can write a song in the style of any musician or time period, create a list to fit any prompt, invent recipes with a specified list of ingredients and – as educators have found – write lesson plans, rubrics and activities. Others, like Microsoft Bing AI, can also generate images.

Developers of AI can be selective about the information fed to their algorithms, so each generative AI-based tool is different in this regard. AI tools can “hallucinate,” or invent information when it doesn’t have an answer to a prompt. Educators say tools should be used with a high level of scrutiny, given their ability to present misinformation as fact.

When asked to explain how AI works to an 80-year-old, ChatGPT described itself as a “really smart robot friend” that can “learn” to recognize patterns. For example, it knows what a cat is and what it looks like because it’s combed the internet for images of cats and can recognize the features. As it “sees” more pictures of cats, its algorithm becomes more adept at identifying cats.