Nonfiction

The Road to Conscious Machines: The Story of AI

The Road to Conscious Machines: The Story of AI

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  • Create Date：2021-04-01 14:53:51
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Michael Wooldridge
  • ISBN：0241333903
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Summary

'A terrific book - essential reading for everyone seeking to make sense of Artificial Intelligence' Professor Sir Adrian Smith， Director and Chief Executive of the Alan Turing Institute

In this myth-busting guide to AI past and present， one of the world's leading researchers shows why our fears for the future are misplaced。

The ultimate dream of AI is to build machines that are like us: conscious and self-aware。 While this remains a remote possibility， rapid progress in AI is already transforming our world。 Yet the public debate is still largely centred on unlikely prospects， from sentient machines to dystopian robot takeovers。

In this lively and clear-headed guide， Michael Wooldridge challenges the prevailing narrative， revealing how the hype distracts us from both the more immediate risks that this technology poses - from algorithmic bias to fake news - and the true life-changing potential of the field。 The Road to Conscious Machines elucidates the discoveries of AI's greatest pioneers from Alan Turing to Demis Hassabis， and what today's researchers actually think and do。

'Nobody understands the past， the present， the promise and the peril of this new technology better than Michael Wooldridge。 The definitive account' Matt Ridley， author of The Rational Optimist

'Effortlessly readable。 The perfect guide to the history and future of AI' Tom Chivers， author of The AI Does Not Hate You

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Reviews

Elliot ，

Rather disappointed by this one。 Given him being the head of CS at Oxford， I had high expectations that Wooldridge would bring sufficient depth into the discussions about AI。 The book had little。 The first half was a recount of some significant milestones in the history of AI development。 Rather than revealing the details with regards to AI techniques， they serve more as an ice breaker for introduction to basic CS concepts。 Anyone having basic understanding of programming can safely skip the ent Rather disappointed by this one。 Given him being the head of CS at Oxford， I had high expectations that Wooldridge would bring sufficient depth into the discussions about AI。 The book had little。 The first half was a recount of some significant milestones in the history of AI development。 Rather than revealing the details with regards to AI techniques， they serve more as an ice breaker for introduction to basic CS concepts。 Anyone having basic understanding of programming can safely skip the entirety of Part I。 Part II and III were more interesting as Wooldridge provided his opinions about the current and future conditions of AI， the myths， the promises， and the dangers。 However， these were not explored in depth， either。 The sections were more like individual essays as they lack coherence。 This book won’t provide you with much new， unless you’ve never read anything on AI other than news titles。 。。。more

James ，

I particularly enjoyed this excellent book on the history， state of the art and future of Artificial Intellegience。 As an engineering student I had a brief introuduction into techniques like Neural Networks back in the early 90s but the techniques were horribly limited by the lack of computing power available at the time。 So it was interesting to read that may of the basic techniques aren't that much changed nowadays but it is just that the scale of the computation that has lead to the differenc I particularly enjoyed this excellent book on the history， state of the art and future of Artificial Intellegience。 As an engineering student I had a brief introuduction into techniques like Neural Networks back in the early 90s but the techniques were horribly limited by the lack of computing power available at the time。 So it was interesting to read that may of the basic techniques aren't that much changed nowadays but it is just that the scale of the computation that has lead to the differences。 It was also fascinating to see how the term AI has evolved over the years。Well worth a read if you have the slightest interest in the topic 。。。more

Eren Buğlalılar ，

A very fluent introduction to the historical background and basic concepts of artificial intelligence written by a computer scientist from the University of Oxford。 Usually these popular science introductions are populated with lots of anecdotes and metaphors to get the message across， but this wasn't Wooldridge's approach。 He does not shy away from the technicalities but still manages to keep it simple enough for the beginners and those who want to have a general idea about the concept。 The boo A very fluent introduction to the historical background and basic concepts of artificial intelligence written by a computer scientist from the University of Oxford。 Usually these popular science introductions are populated with lots of anecdotes and metaphors to get the message across， but this wasn't Wooldridge's approach。 He does not shy away from the technicalities but still manages to keep it simple enough for the beginners and those who want to have a general idea about the concept。 The book might feel a bit claustrophobic -but still not boring- at times since it stays more on the technical side and does away with the storification or the trivia。 In Chapters 7 and 8， he discusses the trendy misconceptions about the future of AI and does a very well job in highlighting the actual concerns we should have about the AI。 。。。more

Josh 🐯 ，

For someone with a mathematical background， I found the first half of the book fairly tedious， although this is no fault of the author。 Once the book moves from historical progress to future development and hypothetical scenarios， it truly start to shine。 The author has a refreshingly pragmatic view on how AI will affect our lives， giving the reader plenty of pauses do thought。

Nujood ，

So， this book was FUN。 Actually， this book BECAME fun towards the end， chapter 7 onwards to be more specific。 Let’s start with why I did not enjoy the book as much as I expected to。 The book aims to do multiple things all at once， it wants to provide a general introduction to AI techniques， it wants to provide an update on intelligent machines， it wants to chronicle the development of AI， it also wants to give us an update on where， who and what AI is up to AND finally， it wants to provide a con So， this book was FUN。 Actually， this book BECAME fun towards the end， chapter 7 onwards to be more specific。 Let’s start with why I did not enjoy the book as much as I expected to。 The book aims to do multiple things all at once， it wants to provide a general introduction to AI techniques， it wants to provide an update on intelligent machines， it wants to chronicle the development of AI， it also wants to give us an update on where， who and what AI is up to AND finally， it wants to provide a conclusive argument on the Terminator scenario。 It actually manages to do all of that， just at the expense of the overall reading experience。 It really was a little scattered and I found my self just trying to put some of the interesting parts in a more meaningful way at the back of the book so I had a ‘Meet the Robots’ section and a section on Techniques that I found interesting。 So I did end up with some valuable new insight， it was just a little taxing in that sense。 Other than the overall flow， the tone and marvellous ‘British Sarcasm’ of the author echos beautifully。 It really was filled with humour and unexpected side notes that just made it an overall highly engaging read。 The book really flourishes however towards the mid-end from chapter 7 onwards。 The discussions on philosophy， the singularity， the impact of Marxism and the socialist utopia， the ‘Trolley Problem’ and ethical AI， the ‘Chinese Room Scenario’ and Deep Fakes was an absolute joy to read。 The author really communicated complex dimensions of consciousness and a realistic AI driven future with solid convincing arguments although he shattered my heart in ‘The Singularity is Bullshit’ section。 Nonetheless， it really was just a joy going through these discussions with the author。 There was one particular theme that really bonded the book together and that was the ‘Allan Turing Test’。 So， do we need machines that are actually conscious or is the illusion of consciousness enough， we as humans might only be exhibiting an illusion of these traits ourselves in any case。 This really calls for some further contemplation。 Basically， the whole narrative felt like a heartfelt homage to Allan Turing which I thought was beautiful。 Finally， I DO recommend it， maybe start with the end if you are short on time and I would also add that ‘In Our Own Image’ which kind of set the bar for AI books for me personally is a must if you are interested in the topic。 。。。more

Aaron Schulze ，

Honestly it's just as any other book about AI and its history。 There is nothing new and no exciting concepts， and everything is described in a very basic way。 so if you're already familiar with AI basic concepts， a bit of cognitive science and science in general then it is not worth your time。 Sorry！！！ Honestly it's just as any other book about AI and its history。 There is nothing new and no exciting concepts， and everything is described in a very basic way。 so if you're already familiar with AI basic concepts， a bit of cognitive science and science in general then it is not worth your time。 Sorry！！！ 。。。more

Michael ，

Highly recommended readable overview of AIHighly recommended accessible book on AI。 Covers the history of the field （in an interesting and insightful way）， and where it is today。 Highlights what we should not worry about， and what we should。 Professor Wooldridge is one of the leaders in the field， and also writes very clearly and accessibly。

Willow H。 Wood ，

I didn't expect to read this so quickly， but I super enjoyed it。 I love Wooldridge's style。 He seems like a genuine man who honestly wants to share an understanding of what AI actually is and where it is actually headed in the future。 It's never patronising and never hollow in it's explanations （such as mentioning a programming technique and then never explaining what that means， or giving an explanation that seems like I've been cheated of information because it's too hard" for my understanding I didn't expect to read this so quickly， but I super enjoyed it。 I love Wooldridge's style。 He seems like a genuine man who honestly wants to share an understanding of what AI actually is and where it is actually headed in the future。 It's never patronising and never hollow in it's explanations （such as mentioning a programming technique and then never explaining what that means， or giving an explanation that seems like I've been cheated of information because it's too hard" for my understanding）。 Always excellent diagrams and breakdowns that somehow weren't dry and boring。 Wow， well done。I enjoyed reading the chronological history of AI through its highlights and failures。 While it evidently cut out a lot of history， it also felt like a fantastic entry point， with descriptions that really WANT to convey the significance of each landmark to a layman。The subsequent chapters on philosophy， socio-economic factors， consciousness， and real-world current progress - this was overall just fascinating。 Despite the overall message "we will probably never achieve conscious machines sorry but really we won't - here is why" it was very positive on what can be achieved and offered a new perspective on what we SHOULD be worried about。 Really well written。 Truly loved。 。。。more

Deepak P ，

Quite a delightful read。 Starts with the history of AI， and how AI has matured along the decades。 The author starts with outlining early advances in symbolic reasoning， then the knowledge-based systems era （expert systems）， followed by agents， and then， finally the machine learning era。 The various merits and demerits of the streams are presented in good detail， and also understandable at the layman level。 The author then talks about some of the pressing questions of our times。 I found some of t Quite a delightful read。 Starts with the history of AI， and how AI has matured along the decades。 The author starts with outlining early advances in symbolic reasoning， then the knowledge-based systems era （expert systems）， followed by agents， and then， finally the machine learning era。 The various merits and demerits of the streams are presented in good detail， and also understandable at the layman level。 The author then talks about some of the pressing questions of our times。 I found some of the views quite controversial， especially， emphatic statements like 'we should stop talking about trolley problems'， and some views on driverless cars。 The last chapters also had very interesting content， especially dealing with the theory of mind， and some related ones。 。。。more

Alessio Malizia ，

Definitely worth reading。 Clear and informative。 The 4 stars is really an average between a 5-star part 1 and 2， such an engaging history of A。I。 and skilled introduction of all the techniques and systems and a 3/4-star Part 3 that is very good but not as brilliant as part 1 and 2。

Kento ，

Skims way too much on details。 Brings up many concepts/ideas just to breeze through them。 Written for light reading， not depth。Content's around 3/5 on history of AI， the remaining on how things may/may not go wrong and （possibility of） conscious machines。 Skims way too much on details。 Brings up many concepts/ideas just to breeze through them。 Written for light reading， not depth。Content's around 3/5 on history of AI， the remaining on how things may/may not go wrong and （possibility of） conscious machines。 。。。more

Paul Ataua ，

What a great read！ Aimed at the educated layman， this history of AI and machine learning is a must read for anyone interested in the field。 Woolridge takes you through the developments， focusing both on the failures and the successes， with just enough science to make it understandable and further explanations in the appendices for those not suffering an irrational fear of algorithms。 Big five stars for this stimulating history and the discussion about future fears and possibilities。

Martin Chesbrough ，

I found this book to be a good summary of the history of AI。 It is closely linked into the history of computing from the early days of Alan Turing to the present day。 Michael has a broad knowledge of many aspects of AI， robotics， machine learning and he is generous with sharing his knowledge。At the end of the book he also dives into the ethics debate and into the future of AI - should we be worried。 Well there are a lot of things to worry about in the future but not necessarily in the populist m I found this book to be a good summary of the history of AI。 It is closely linked into the history of computing from the early days of Alan Turing to the present day。 Michael has a broad knowledge of many aspects of AI， robotics， machine learning and he is generous with sharing his knowledge。At the end of the book he also dives into the ethics debate and into the future of AI - should we be worried。 Well there are a lot of things to worry about in the future but not necessarily in the populist media thinking about AI。 。。。more

Andrew Carr ，

Ironically or not， the best way to understand science is often through history。 As Wooldridge relates early on， he planned this book as 'the story of AI through failed ideas' - and in this he succeeds brilliantly in showing the fascinating and compelling slog towards Artificial Intelligence。This is an outstanding read。 It is passionate about the technology， yet sceptical about its achievements。 Wooldridge - Head of the Computer Science department at Oxford University - is humane in his judgement Ironically or not， the best way to understand science is often through history。 As Wooldridge relates early on， he planned this book as 'the story of AI through failed ideas' - and in this he succeeds brilliantly in showing the fascinating and compelling slog towards Artificial Intelligence。This is an outstanding read。 It is passionate about the technology， yet sceptical about its achievements。 Wooldridge - Head of the Computer Science department at Oxford University - is humane in his judgements， yet clear and logical in his assessments。 There's enough to get your teeth into， but little to scare away the general reader。 He mainly talks technology （its logic and approach rather than specific kit）， but engages some of the more interesting and important social and philosophical problems。The benefit of a history of AI is it lets you see two things more future-oriented works can obscure: First is how far we are from Terminator type scenarios and how unlikely it will be that they emerge in our lifetimes。 Wooldridge pushes a very cautious message about modern AI， noting how waves of faddish optimism have nearly killed the field twice before， and thus greater caution is required today。 This is an academic who is surveying his field， highlighting its strengths， while issuing a warning about how it is being received/understood publicly。Second and true to his word， Wooldridge proves a historical narrative of how idea after idea has failed in AI。 Yet along the way he shows that we've learned just a little bit more， found dead ends， debated grand ideas， and slowly developed quite remarkable contemporary systems。 This is quite compelling。 As someone who works in an academic field which does not evolve in anything like the way the physical sciences do， I am modestly envious of the sense of progression and development which is charted。 It's empirically closer to Kuhn than fables about a linear searches for 'The Truth'， but there's still enough of a clear message of learning and improvement that leaves you admiring the people involved and the brilliance of humanity in general。I've read a lot of books on AI lately for a journal article and this is by far the best general introduction and analysis of the issues。 Other books （such as The AI Delusion by Gary Smith or The Globotics Upheaveal by Richard Baldwin） may capture certain areas in more depth， but by giving us the history and remarkably clear descriptions of how these systems work， it offer both caution and encouragement。 Buy it。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Road to Conscious Machines: The Story of AI

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Road to Conscious Machines: The Story of AI&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Road to Conscious Machines: The Story of AI&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0