Difference Between Robots and Artificial Intelligence

• By Pickl.AI
• 24-04-2023
• Artificial Intelligence

The discussion around robotics and Artificial Intelligence have become a trend these days, whether it is a social media forum, or a discussion in the office, everyone is talking about the AI revolution. Another hounding question that is emerging from this trend is whether robots and AI will replace human jobs. Are they a threat to humanity? Will robots completely replace humans? Are these sci-fi characters, soon going to become a part of our life? People may hold different perspectives on the same, but we cannot ignore the fact that robots and AI are here to stay.

These technologies have made an intervention in our lives and our impacted our day-to-day business operations. While many consider AI and robots to be synonymous but there is a line of difference between the two. In this blog, we are going to unfold the difference between robots and artificial intelligence.

Key Highlights

• The AI and robotics market is on an expansion spree. It is expected to reach a mark of USD 35.3 billion by 2026.
• The pandemic period played an important role in enhancing the acceptance of robots for medical aid.
• The AI robotics market will witness a growth rate of 38.6%
• Industrial robots are one of the massively growing segments in robotics. It accounted for 61.35% of the global market share in 2021.
• Many also believe that robots and AI will replace human jobs, and at the same time, they will also create newer job opportunities.

AI Vs. Robots

In the normal scenario, people talk about AI and robots in the same breath, but the fact is that both these terminologies are different, and there is a line of difference between the two. The following segment throws light on AI vs robots, but before that, we will scratch the definition of Artificial Intelligence and robots.

What is Artificial Intelligence?

Artificial intelligence is a technology that empowers a computer system or software to mimic human-like behaviour. In simple terms, it designs the algorithm that makes the machine capable of functioning like a human. It involves the development of algorithms and models that can analyze the data, and based on it, it is able to make predictions. With advanced artificial intelligence, machines are also capable of learning from experience and improvising.

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AI technologies are going widespread. Its multidisciplinary applications across the industrial domain highlight the growth of this technology and its penetration across the industry. You can find autonomous vehicles, the use of AI in medical diagnosis, recommendation systems and virtual assistants. Owing to this, many people believe that AI is a probable threat to humanity. However, it remains a debatable question. While it certainly creates a threat to human jobs, at the same time, it has also opened up newer opportunities in the AI domain.

Key features of AI

Artificial intelligence encompasses several other technologies. Each of these offers its own set of features. Some of these are highlighted below:

Machine Learning

It is an offshoot of artificial intelligence, which prepares the machine to learn from the data and improve its performance with time. This involves the use of algorithms and statistical models.

Natural Language Processing (NLP)

It is also a branch of artificial intelligence which enables the computer to interpret and generate human language. It is used in speech recognition, language translation and sentiment analysis.

Computer Vision

It is an important subset of artificial intelligence which repair the machine to interpret visual information like images and videos. It is used for image recognition and object detection. Facial recognition is yet another application of computer vision.

Deep Learning

It involves the use of an artificial neural network. This works in a similar fashion as that of the human neural network. Deep learning algorithms can process and analyze large volumes of data that is making them highly effective in speech and image recognition.

Decision-Making

One of the notable features of AI-enabled machines is that it has decision-making capabilities. Since these algorithms are trained to analyze the predefined data sets and adapt according to the new changes, it helps the organization make informed decisions based on this analysis.

Scalability

AI technology is growing and expanding massively. The ability to handle big and complex datasets makes it a useful technology for several industries across the domain, like healthcare, finance, and e-commerce.

Applications of AI

The application of AI is not just limited to the IT domain. Instead, it has made strides in different industries like healthcare, transportation, finance and others. Here are some examples of applications of AI

Healthcare

Many medical care facility providers and businesses are working in this domain and now switching to artificial intelligence. For example, the AI system can help in day-to-day administrative activities like scheduling meetings, maintaining the files of the patients, and transcribing medical notes, thus helping to organize patient information.

Another application of AI in the medical domain is an interpretation of MRI scans to diagnose tumors or other harmful growth that may be a point of concern.

E-Commerce

Chatbots are widely used on the e-commerce platform. The bots are capable to interact like human and hence are a great way to address customer queries, recommendations, preference lists. These are some of the ways e-commerce companies are incorporating AI to make the customer experience more profound.

Virtual shopping assistants and chatbots help in the enhancement of the online buying experience. NLP is used to make the dialogue sound more realistic and have a personal touch. The end objective is to make the customer buy from the platform.

Fraud Detection and prevention

Fraud detection is yet another important area of application of AI. Businesses can face bad reputation and monetary loss because of credit card fraud and fraudulent reviews. By taking into account usage trends, AI can lower the risk of credit card fraud.

What is Robotics?

The most common definition of robots is that they are mechanical devices designed and developed to perform tasks autonomously or semi-autonomously. Robots are available in different shapes and sizes, ranging from simple machines to complicated devices with advanced functionalities.

Categorization of Robots

Industrial Robots

Industrial robots have acquired a major share of the robotics market. These are developed to assist in manufacturing and production processes like assembly lines, welding and packaging. The prime objective of incorporating industrial robots is to make the work more efficient and flawless. Thus reducing the dependency on human labour.

Service Robots

These robots are used in service-oriented industries like healthcare, hospitality and customer service. These robots are designed to perform tasks like delivery, companionship and providing support. Flippy 2 is one such example. It is used in companies like Buffalo Wild Wings and Chipotle. This robot is used to make fried food.

Another example in this list is Artly. It has AI-equipped barista bots. These bots use a combination of deep learning and computer vision technologies to make coffee orders. They are also equipped to monitor the quality of drinks and adopt new tricks from human baristas.

Autonomous Vehicles

As evident from the name, these robots are designed to operate autonomously and navigate the environment without human intervention. These include examples like self-driving cars, drones and underwater robots. ROV is an underwater robot, and companies like Tesla have already introduced self-driven cars in the market.

Humanoid Robots

These robots are designed with the aim of performing work similar to that of humans. They can interact and show emotions, thus making them capable of replicating human behaviour. Some examples include Sophia, Atlas, Nadine, TALAS and others.

Educational Robots

These robots are apt for educational purposes, such as teaching programming, coding, and STEM concepts to students. For example, Makeblock mBo, can teach children robotics, programming and electronics. Another example is LEGO Mindstorms EV3, which can help students create different robots capable of moving, shooting, crawling, etc.

With these developments, we can conclude that robotics and artificial intelligence are changing the way we look at things and how they operate. Robots can be controlled using remotes, and they can be pre programmed by artificial intelligence algorithms.

Applications of Robots

1. Security

Robotics companies are working on pairing robot guards with human security consultants. One of the examples in this domain is Knightscope in the United States. It has autonomous security robots capable of assisting human security guards with real-time, actionable intelligence. These robots can help with crimes like burglaries, fraud, hit and run, robberies and others.

2. Space Exploration

Space institutions like NASA frequently use robots and autonomous vehicles to perform several tasks. One of the popular examples in this domain is Mars Rover. It is an autonomous robot that travels on Mars and takes pictures of the planet and sends it back to NASA. Thus helping in research and development.

4. Agriculture

Agricultural sector can also benefit from the robotics application. The robots can perform tasks like seeding, weed control, harvesting, etc. One example is Ecoroboti. It is powered by solar energy and is used to target and spray weeds.

5. HealthCare

Robots have changed healthcare a lot. One example of this is the da Vinci robot that can help surgeons in performing complex surgeries relating to the heart, head, neck, and other sensitive areas. There are other robotic devices that are created, like exoskeletons, that can be used to provide additional support for people undergoing rehabilitation after spinal injuries, strokes, etc.

Summary of AI vs Robots

Features of Artificial Intelligence

• Definition: It is a branch of computer science that focuses on creating machines which perform and work like humans.
• Functioning: AI is the capability of machines to imitate human decision-making skills, speech recognition, and image recognition.
• Objective: AI focuses on creating intelligent software, an algorithm that can analyse the data and make decisions based on this analysis
• Autonomous: AI can be either autonomous or semi-autonomous based on the application. Moreover, AI algorithms are also designed to adapt to new changes and make decisions accordingly.
• Examples: Some examples of AI include Siri, Alexa, self-driving cars and others.

Features of Robotics

• Definition: It is a mechanical device that can perform a task either autonomously or semi-autonomously.
• Functioning: Robots are usually deployed to perform physical tasks like welding, cleaning and delivery based on the type of algorithm that powers them.
• Objective: Robots, on the other hand, focus on performing physical tasks like the movement of goods and products.
• Autonomous: Robots can be completely autonomous or semiautonomous based on the kind of programming. They Are designed to perform the task with limited or no human intervention.
• Examples: Robots find multiple applications across the industry, in the education sector, hospitality sector and even in entertainment.

The objective of AI and robotics is to help in making better decisions and ensuring flawless work, and enhancing productivity. Robots are one of the applications of artificial intelligence. It is the AI algorithm that enables the robots to perform a particular task. Because of this massive growth, there has been a staggering rise in the demand for AI professionals. In fact, it has emerged as one of the well-paying job profiles.

Progressing Ahead

The technology domain is expanding as it has become one of the most prosperous career opportunities. Individuals who are eyeing to make a step forward in this domain can start their journey with Data Science Course Online. These courses provide expertise in the fundamentals of data science along with the allied concepts of artificial intelligence and machine learning. You, too, can enroll in one such program and start your learning journey today.

The advancement in the AI domain clearly highlights that we are soon going to witness many new and exciting development in this domain. Hence, an individual who is looking for a promising career opportunity can consider making a move into the AI domain.