An Introduction to Artificial Intelligence

ChatGPT, the first widely accessible Generative Artificial Intelligence model, met with an avalanche of excitement and headlines when it was released in November 2022. It is believed to be the fastest growing consumer application ever, reaching 100 million users within just two months. Since then, Generative AI has continued to make waves, from winning Art Awards to driving contentious foreign policy. Shows such as Red Dwarf and 2001: A Space Odyssey conjure an image of Artificial Intelligence as a sort of omniscient being trapped inside a computer, capable of thinking and conversing like a human. Ultimately, that is the goal of Generative AI models: to replicate and apply the processes behind thought to their, theoretically, unlimited knowledge base.