It seemed really amazing that you could write a few lines of code and have it learn to do interesting things.
Interpretation
The quote highlights the fascinating potential of coding and machine learning.
Andrew Ng expresses awe at the capability of writing a simple program that can enable machines to learn and perform complex tasks. This reflects the transformative power of technology, particularly in the realm of artificial intelligence, where a few lines of code can lead to remarkable advancements and innovations.
In practice
During a tech conference, to emphasize the impact of coding in AI advancements.
AI has been making tremendous progress in machine translation, self-driving cars, etc. Basically, all the progress I see is in specialised intelligence. It might be hundreds or thousands of years or, if there is an unexpected breakthrough, decades.
Most of the value of deep learning today is in narrow domains where you can get a lot of data. Here's one example of something it cannot do: have a meaningful conversation.
Imagine if we can just talk to our computers and have it understand, 'Please schedule a meeting with Bob for next week.' Or if each child could have a personalized tutor. Or if self-driving cars could save all of us hours of driving.
A single neuron in the brain is an incredibly complex machine that even today we don't understand. A single 'neuron' in a neural network is an incredibly simple mathematical function that captures a minuscule fraction of the complexity of a biological neuron.
None of us today know how to get computers to learn with the speed and flexibility of a child.
I've been to so many manufacturing plants. I've yet to walk into one where I did not think AI solutions wouldn't help.
People thought I was crazy thinking about a phone you can just put in your pocket.
I was in Bangalore, India, the Silicon Valley of India, when I realized that the world was flat.
Video games are bad for you? That's what they said about rock 'n' roll.
The Internet was done so well that most people think of it as a natural resource like the Pacific Ocean, rather than something that was man-made. When was the last time a technology with a scale like that was so error-free? The Web, in comparison, is a joke. The Web was done by amateurs.
For decades, the pace of technological change in manufacturing has outstripped that in the economy as a whole. And, so, firms - manufacturing firms - have found it easier to continue producing by - with - reducing their workforces.
Web 2.0 ideas have a chirpy, cheerful rhetoric to them, but I think they consistently express a profound pessimism about humans, human nature and the human future.
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