Artificial Intelligence: an Overview

The course will provide a non-technical overview of the artificial intelligence field. Initially, a discussion on the birth of AI is provided, remarking the seminal ideas and preliminary goals. Furthermore, the crucial weaknesses are presented and how these weaknesses have been circumvented. Then, the current state of AI is presented, in terms of goals, importance at national level, and strategies. Moreover, the taxonomy of the AI topics is presented.

This course will address the hardware technologies for machine and deep learning (from the units of an Internet-of-Things system to a large-scale data centers) and will explore the families of machine and deep learning platforms (libraries and frameworks) for the design and development of smart applications and systems.

The MOOC deals with the ethical issues created, aggravated or transformed by AI. It is intended to give students a chance to reflect on the impact of AI on ethical, social and cultural aspects by focusing on the issues faced by and brought about by professionals in AI and information technologies. The MOOC will address these topics by means of case studies and examples analyzed by using the main ethical frameworks. By actively participating in this MOOC, you will achieve different intended learning outcomes (ILOs). - Acquire a broad perspective on the ethical impacts and societal implications of AI. - Learn how to recognize and analyze ethical and social issues inherent in AI. - Be able to understand how technical problems are connected to a social dimension within a socio-technical perspective. - Be able to use critical skills in clarifying and ethically analyzing case-studies involving AI technologies. - Be better prepared for professional life in an ethically and socially responsible way. This MOOC was produced as part of the Edvance project – Digital Education Hub per la Cultura Digitale Avanzata. The project is funded by the European Union – Next Generation EU, Component 1, Investment 3.4 “Didattica e competenze universitarie avanzate".

The purpose of the course is to help students understand the legal implications related to the design and use of artificial intelligence systems, providing an overview of the risks and legal protections that can be envisaged and giving an overview of the legislation and legal principles currently applicable on the subject. In particular, the profiles of civil and criminal liability, protection in terms of intellectual property and the impacts of AI on the fundamental rights of the individual - including privacy and the right to non-discrimination – will be examined.