Understanding artificial intelligence in the context of usage: Contributions and smartness of algorithmic capabilities in work systems

Abstract This paper presents an approach for describing and characterizing algorithms that are discussed as though they embody artificial intelligence. After identifying observations and assumptions related to algorithms and summarizing the work system perspective (WSP), this paper uses a hypothetical example to show how AI applications can be understood by using the WSP, including the ideas of facets of work and categories and degrees of smartness in devices and systems. It applies those ideas to aspects of five AI-related examples presented by entrepreneurs and researchers at an MIT AI conference in July 2020. Those examples were selected because they illustrated many AI-related issues. This paper’s contribution is a new approach for characterizing real world applications and impacts of almost any system that uses algorithms or is associated with artificial intelligence.