At our university, professor Brian Sayre was appointed to lead our campus artificial intelligence (AI) educational and operational initiative. When I met him this past December, I said that AI was over my head. He replied with something like, “Don’t worry, you’ll get it in time.”

It is important to understand that AI only mimics or imitates human intelligence. AI powered functionality does this by training or teaching a computer program through data input, with a set of algorithms to follow to solve a problem or make decisions or predictions. There are advanced technologies that are impressive and conflated or confused with AI, but are not, such as networks that enable AI apps, nanotechnology, industrial robots with fixed preprogrammed mechanical systems, quantum computing, CRISPR gene editing in biotechnology and others, of course.

Were you to do a sort of a scavenger hunt to locate things powered by algorithms, you could list the refrigerator that beeps when left open, the YouTube app suggesting videos, fitness trackers, your smart alarm, a curated news feed, e-mail filters, meditation apps, traffic updates or your car. Miles Kenner, author of “Intelligent Ignorance,” wrote that, “Suddenly, AI is everywhere, hiding in plain sight.”

I would like to mention targeted searches concerning practical AI use, particularly in Korea. A growing trend is 24/7 unmanned restaurants and advanced smart cooking vending machines. They have touch screens, are multilingual and have voice recognition AI-powered ordering systems with automated cooking times, temperatures and sequencing to create meals within minutes.

AI is deeply integrated into eateries that do not require the proprietor to be present. The companies leading this trend in Korea are Pulmuone, which partnered with the U.S. based Yo-Kai Express machines now found throughout U.S. universities, hospitals and transportation hubs. Pulmuone launched Korea’s first frozen food-based smart cooking vending machines called “Robot Chef.” These autonomous units cook ramen, udon, pasta, rice bowls and dim sum within two minutes.

Perhaps you have seen the “Better Than Yours” coffee shops launched by the private company Robros in 2022. They have robot baristas that cost up to $70,000 per unit. Your coffee will be more affordable compared to traditional cafes.

It is the AI in the health care industry that I’m most attracted to. I like the new Overjet color-coded visual dental X-rays that identify and outlines decay, prior restorations, periapical periodontitis and abscesses and quantify bone levels. Overjet was created in 2018 by MIT computer scientists and Harvard dentists at Harvard Innovations Labs and has become a leader in dental AI for precision, consistency and speed.

Another AI health care innovation is the medical imaging classifiers — the specific machines and devices that detect tumors, lesions, fractures and other abnormalities in medical scans. Korea is one of the world’s top medical imaging markets. Hospitals use Samsung NeuroLogica CT scanners, Samsung MRI machines, Samsung mammography and Alpinion ultrasound machines. Lunit cloud-based AI scanners produced in Korea detect lung cancer, tuberculosis, pneumonia and breast cancer; VUNO detects dementia biomarkers; and JLK Medical AI can identify ischemic stroke and brain lesions. Korea leads in AI diagnostic software, ultrasound hardware, portable CT scanners and AI-enhanced mammography tools.

Seoul leads in AI kiosks which contain, integrate and operate across multiple domains with artificial narrow intelligence models inside that function independently. It is like a toolbox holding many tools. These kiosks are present in Emart24 unmanned stores, GS25 and CU convenience stores.

AI has its flaws but the AI ecosystem is constantly improving today’s digital transformation and bringing the global world closer together.

The author (wrjones@vsu.edu) published the novella “Beyond Harvard” and teaches English as a second language.