Artificial intelligence has moved rapidly from computer science textbooks to the mainstream, generating delights such as the reproduction of celebrity voices and chatbots ready to entertain meandering conversations.

But the technology, which refers to machines trained to perform intelligent tasks, also threatens profound disruption: of social norms, entire industries and tech companies’ fortunes. It has great potential to change everything from diagnosing patients to predicting weather patterns — but it could also put millions of people out of work or even surpass human intelligence, some experts say.

Last week, the Pew Research Center released a survey in which a majority of Americans — 52 percent — said they feel more concerned than excited about the increased use of artificial intelligence, including worries about personal privacy and human control over the new technologies.

The proliferation this year of generative AI models such as ChatGPT, Bard and Bing, all of which are available to the public, brought artificial intelligence to the forefront. Now, governments from China to Brazil to Israel are also trying to figure out how to harness AI’s transformative power, while reining in its worst excesses and drafting rules for its use in everyday life.

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