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Artificial Intelligence (AI): What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

Currency of Information: Information about ChatGPT and other AI tools is continuously evolving. We are doing our best to ensure this guide is accurate and up to date, and will be updating information as it emerges. Wherever possible, we've identified dates for articles and information to help users understand when the information we are using was published. 
If you find discrepancies or out dated information, please email library@jibc.ca

What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to machines completing tasks with human-like intelligence.

We encounter AI enabled technologies daily, for example asking Alexa or Siri a question, facial recognition on your phone, voice-to-text messaging, Google maps, recommendations on Netflix, online banking, and more. 

Although AI is common, new tools continue to be developed. It's important to understand the positive uses of these tools and any potential negative drawbacks. In academia, we see AI tools used in positive ways for automatic transcription of lectures, grammar or spellcheck, and related reading suggestions in library databases. There are also concerns associated with these tools though, such as embedded bias or the potential for misuse or unauthorized use to complete assignments.  

Use this guide to learn more about AI, ChatGPT, along with suggestions for instructors and students. 

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Unless otherwise noted, this guide is licensed under a CC BY-SA 4.0 (Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License).

Information on this page was adapted from Mount Royal University Library's Artificial Intelligence page, which is licensed under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license. 

The information on this page was adapted with permission from KPU's Artificial Intelligence LibGuide, created by Ulrike Kestler.