Understanding Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)

Muhammad Ahasn Zulfiqar   May 30, 2024  7:54 a.m.

Artificial intelligence is everywhere, and people across industries are now aware of it, but what is artificial general intelligence, and why are people beginning to talk about it? These were the exact thoughts that came to my mind when I heard of artificial general intelligence or AGI. So, what is it, and why is this a big deal according to some? Let’s find out.

What is Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)?

Have you seen those videos or read blogs where you are warned about the evil power of artificial intelligence and that the technology is going to take over the world and eliminate non-compliant humans, while all you get is rather less-intelligent GPT, which is no way near threatening? Well, that scary technology can be artificial general intelligence. As of today, the subject of artificial general intelligence is thought to be a hypothetical form of AI that can think, process, and act like a human. A real, conscious, self-aware, logical human. Today, artificial general intelligence (also sometimes referred to as strong AI) is a mere concept and yet to be created, but even the idea of AGI happening a few years, or decades from now is exciting. Imagine if you could ask AI to do something. It just doesn’t apply an algorithm to get the work done but critically assesses the situation to ensure you get the right output—isn’t that amazing? The existing forms and models of AI are no way near to what AGI is, and AI engineers and developers are working to make it a reality—but it might take years or decades to see it in action.

AGI Vs. AI: Are These Similar?

A lot of people around you (and me) might not understand the difference between AGI and AI—but the fact of the matter is both these terms are confusing, at least till AGI is publicly introduced and becomes common. AGI, or artificial general intelligence, is a subset of AI but an advanced version of it. The AI in practice today, or the models that are being widely used, are often trained or real-world data that has been cleansed and refined to omit any inaccuracies and are expected to perform a single or a set of tasks. However, there’s a big limitation to achieving maximum efficiency, and that is: all these models are often limited to a single context and cannot analyze data, and hence, cannot have human-like intelligence. It performs certain defined actions and follows the already laid out rules in the algorithm to steer its actions and processes, which are also in a specific environment.

What Are the Capabilities of an AGI System?

When implemented, AGI should be able to carry out a range of tasks that no current system is able to perform. No doubt that the systems in place today are increasingly intelligent and solve a variety of problems for humans, but they are still not at the level of human or general intelligence.

Artificial General Intelligence Examples & Use Cases

AGI isn’t real yet, at least for the public. No system currently exists that works and performs with human-like abilities. However, there are a few applications of weak or narrow AI development that take it near to what will be found in artificial general intelligence, or strong AI, with better accuracy and efficiency and without the limitations and constraints of limited memory.

Fully Autonomous Vehicles

Fully autonomous vehicles or self-driving cars are a form of AI that is near to what an AGI system will be like. These self-driving models/systems approximate or sometimes far surpass human intelligence and depict AGI-like characteristics. The systems are pre-trained with data to identify objects, human and non-human, and made in a way that all regulations and safety measures are well in place.