Over the course of human history, we've been experimenting with animating objects and giving them human-like qualities. But the first person to really move the needle was Alan Turing.
Turing's research in the early 1950s laid the foundation for modern computer science. Artificial intelligence is still the stuff of fiction, but it's interesting enough to attract more bright minds. That merry band of minds includes John McCarthy, who coined the term "artificial intelligence" in 1956.
The device enabled the British to decipher German encrypted spain mobile database communications during World War II. Image credit: Antoine Taveneaux 2
Two years later, McCarthy and his colleagues established the AI program at MIT. The future of AI research began to look bright, if a little too optimistic.
After the initial interest, the AI bubble burst and funding dried up, largely due to disappointing results and limited computing power. Some call this period the first “AI winter.”
In the 1990s, advances in machine learning and natural language processing NLP brought AI back into the spotlight. A few publicity stunts helped it stay there.
In 1997, IBM's computer "Deep Blue" defeated chess world champion Garry Kasparov in a six-game duel. This was the second victory for artificial intelligence after another computer called "Oracle" defeated Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings a year earlier.