Welcome back to part three of the AI series today we will be looking at “Types of Artificial Intelligence: What We Have vs What We Imagine". 

When most people hear Artificial Intelligence, they picture robots that think, feel, and maybe even want to replace humans. But the truth is much simpler. 

              There are different types of AI and the kind we actually use today is far less dramatic than what movies show us.

Let’s break it down.

The AI We Use Every Day (Narrow AI)

This is the only type of AI that truly exists right now. Narrow AI is designed to do one specific task, and do it well.

Examples include:

• Voice assistants like Siri or Google Assistant
• Recommendation systems on Netflix and YouTube
• Face recognition on your phone
• Spam filters in your email

These systems are smart in their own way but only within a limited area.

A voice assistant can answer questions, but it can’t think creatively. A recommendation system can suggest movies, but it doesn’t understand emotions. Narrow AI is powerful, but very focused.

The AI We Imagine (General AI)

This is the AI we see in movies.

General AI would be able to:

• Think like a human
• Learn any task
• Reason across different subjects
• Understand emotions and context

In simple terms, it would be a machine with human-level intelligence.

The important thing to know general AI does not exist yet.

Scientists are still researching it, but we are far from creating machines that truly think like humans.

The AI That Exists Only in Movies (Super AI)

This is where science fiction takes over. Super AI is the idea of machines becoming:

• Smarter than humans
• Self-aware
• Independent

This is the type of AI that dominates movies and novels and also fuels many fears.

Right now, this kind of AI is purely hypothetical.

It exists in imagination, not reality.

Why People Get Confused

Many people assume today’s AI is already close to human intelligence because:

• It responds quickly
• It sounds natural
• It performs complex tasks

But speed and intelligence are not the same thing. AI doesn’t understand ,it calculates. It doesn’t feel it processes.

Why This Distinction Matters

Understanding the types of AI helps separate reality from fear.

The AI we use today:

• Helps automate tasks
• Improves efficiency
• Assists decision-making

It does not:

• Have intentions
• Make independent moral choices
• Replace human judgment completely

Final Thought

Artificial Intelligence is not one big, mysterious thing. It exists in levels and we are still at the earliest and most limited stage. What matters now is not panic, but understanding.

Lecturer: @nifesisuraj