Experts weigh in on AI

Andrew Chi-Chih Yao, Turing Award winner, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, dean of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Information Sciences at Tsinghua University

From a theoretical perspective, I would say that AI for science is the most interesting, important and promising direction for AI research over the next three to five years. AI has demonstrated tremendous power across many domains, but AI algorithms still operate within the boundaries set by the laws of physics and mathematics. Many exciting avenues of exploration lie ahead, including emerging fields such as quantum AI, reliable large-scale AI systems, AI safety and AI for AI. AI and quantum technologies are two powerful tools that continue to expand the frontiers of human knowledge. AI can also accelerate the development of quantum computing. Error correction has been one of the greatest challenges in building quantum computers for the past 40 years, but AI has recently begun to provide promising solutions. Quantum AI is beginning to emerge. I believe we will see tremendous progress over the next five to 10 years. It represents a frontier beyond present-day AI and has the potential to become even more powerful.