Why AI can't understand a flower the way humans do

Even with all its training and computer power, an artificial intelligence (AI) tool like ChatGPT can't represent the concept of a flower the way a human does, according to a new study. That's because the large language models (LLMs) that power AI assistants are usually based on language alone, and sometimes with images. "A large language model can't smell a rose, touch the petals of a daisy or walk through a field of wildflowers," said Qihui Xu, lead author of the study and postdoctoral researcher in psychology at The Ohio State University. "Without those sensory and motor experiences, it can't truly represent what a flower is in all its richness. The same is true of some other human concepts." The study is published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour. Xu said the findings have implications for how AI and humans relate to each other.