9 Conclusion

As this book attempts to convey, artificial intelligence is evolving very quickly, and in many directions all at once. Despite its flaws and shortcomings, it is plain to see that AI provides previously unavailable capabilities. The judicious and innovative use of these capabilities has the potential to transform a wide range of workflows in business, in the arts, and in the sciences. Therefore, it is advisable to stay well informed on the evolution of AI in all its forms. This online version of the book aims to provide readers with updates on important or promising developments in this space.

Future additions to the website will include coverage of the concept of artificial general intelligence (AGI), which describes a hypothetical AI that reaches a level of cognition comparable to that of humans, across a broad range of tasks. We will also cover the ongoing legal question as to whether the training of models on copyrighted material constitutes an infringement of that copyright, which will have far-reaching implications, in particular in the space of generative AI. We finish with a collection of resources, pointing to programming tools/frameworks and datasets that facilitate getting started with machine learning, or exploring a new facet of AI.