Artificial intelligence (AI), or the foundation for the enhanced cognitive ability of machines, has grown by leaps and bounds over the years. It has refined and redefined business frameworks and has taken the notion of operational efficiency to an entirely new level.

As a result of AI, countless breakthroughs have taken place in many industries. Examples of industries that have benefited from AI include: healthcare (data-based diagnostic support), automotive (autonomous fleets for ride sharing), financial services (personalized financial planning), retail and consumer (personalized design and production), technology, communication and entertainment (media archiving and search), manufacturing (enhanced monitoring and auto correction), energy (smart meters), transport and logistics (autonomous trucking) and many more (PwC 2016).

AI has seeped into the day-to-day life of an individual as well, affecting the way they work, live and entertain themselves. Voice-based assistance systems like Siri and Alexa are common example of AI. Online shopping, web search, digital personal assistance, machine translation, smart homes, smart cities, infrastructure, logistics, education, driverless vehicles, and so forth are just few of the examples of integration of AI in commercial and personal applications. All the chapters in this book, contributed by authors from different parts of the world, provide an insight into the use of AI in all walks of life. AI is finding its way in each and every application at a pace one cannot imagine. By the time this book reaches the hands of the reader, there will be far more applications of AI than have been mentioned in this book.

AI can be characterized in at least five ways: