{"id":71880,"date":"2023-04-17T12:32:43","date_gmt":"2023-04-17T19:32:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/?p=71880"},"modified":"2023-08-01T11:36:54","modified_gmt":"2023-08-01T18:36:54","slug":"how-does-ai-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/how-does-ai-work\/","title":{"rendered":"How does AI actually work?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"What is Artificial Intelligence? Mozilla Explains.\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/P-iiN0c2uic?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/mozilla\/mozilla-launches-responsible-ai-challenge\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Artificia<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/mozilla\/mozilla-launches-responsible-ai-challenge\/\">l<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/mozilla\/mozilla-launches-responsible-ai-challenge\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> intelligence<\/a> has entered a new era. From <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/02\/08\/technology\/microsoft-bing-openai-artificial-intelligence.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">search<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/01\/28\/opinion\/letters\/chatbots-education.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">education<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wired.com\/gallery\/where-the-ai-art-boom-came-from-and-where-its-going\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">art<\/a>, recent advancements in AI promise to shake up the way we work and live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet for some of us, AI poses more questions than answers. How will it affect us? Are there risks? How do we make it <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/mozilla\/mozilla-launches-responsible-ai-challenge\/\">trustworthy<\/a>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before we can answer these complex questions, it helps to get the basics down on AI. Read on for a crash course on artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>First, what exactly is AI?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>AI is essentially software that can learn patterns from information. Think language, images, audio, online behavior and more. Using patterns from existing and new data, AI makes predictions to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence \u2013 like finding products we\u2019re likely to buy or finishing a sentence in an email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How does it work?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Take a customer service chatbot, for example. After you type a question, the chatbot uses an algorithm \u2013 or a set of rules&nbsp; \u2013 to recognize keywords and identify what kind of help you need. The machine learning model, based on the existing and new information it has, then generates an appropriate response. The chatbot improves over time as it interacts with new customers and receives more data.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThink about the algorithm as the program that works with the dataset, and the model is the output that makes the prediction,\u201d explained Mozilla researcher <a href=\"https:\/\/schedule.mozillafestival.org\/session\/A8AS8C-1\">Becca Ricks<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why are chatbots like ChatGPT sounding more\u2026 human?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The latest chatbots use a type of machine learning model called a neural network. Inspired by the structure of the human brain, it\u2019s designed to learn increasingly complex patterns to come up with predictions and recommendations. With chatbots, the model learns language from a large amount of existing and new data, making it really good at sounding how a person might talk.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Can AI get things wrong?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Absolutely. AI models learn from data, which can be incomplete. ChatGPT, for instance, is a language model trained on data on the internet. That\u2019s why it may have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/ai-bot-chatgpt-needs-some-help-with-math-assignments-11675390552\">trouble<\/a> solving simple math problems.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>AI can also produce biased outputs. For example, image recognition trained on a set of images featuring mostly light-skinned people may not be able to recognize individuals with darker skin tones. Algorithms and data come from humans, so AI technologies typically follow biases that exist \u2013 like ones based on race, gender and age.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThey might affect whether or not our friends are seeing what we post,\u201d Becca said. \u201cOr, they might affect whether or not we\u2019re getting resources from our local government.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How do we make sure we can trust AI?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The first step is learning about it. From there, we can demand transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe more that we all know the way AI systems work, the easier it makes for us to imagine what better looks like,\u201d Becca said. \u201cAnd it makes it easier for us to design alternatives that benefit society and reflect the values of our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><em>For a deeper dive on AI, the people who are creating it and stories about how it\u2019s affecting communities, check out the latest season of Mozilla\u2019s <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/2022.internethealthreport.org\/\"><em>IRL Podcast<\/em><\/a><em>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>AI exists in almost everything we use on the internet, like search engines and our social media feeds. But if you want to reduce the amount of personal information you have out on the web, don&#8217;t give away your true email and phone number when signing up for the latest AI apps.<br><br>Like any other application, an AI app can expose your information to online trackers, spammers and hackers. <a href=\"https:\/\/relay.firefox.com\/\">Firefox Relay<\/a> offers email and phone number masks so you can sign up for new accounts anonymously.<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Artificial intelligence has entered a new era. From search to education to art, recent advancements in AI promise to shake up the way we work and live. Yet for some of us, AI poses more questions than answers. How will it affect us? Are there risks? How do we make it trustworthy? Before we can [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1889,"featured_media":71881,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[464197,461998,5],"tags":[317823],"coauthors":[464117],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How does AI actually work?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"For some of us, AI poses more questions than answers. How will it affect us? Are there risks? 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