What is the difference between Strong AI, Weak AI, and Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)?
These three terms describe AI on a spectrum of capability and 'understanding'.
Weak AI (Narrow AI) — designed and trained for a specific task. Examples: spam filters, Alexa, image classifiers, even GPT-4 for chat. Cannot generalize beyond its trained domain.
Strong AI — a philosophical concept of a system that has genuine consciousness and understanding, not just simulation. Hypothetical.
Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) — a system that can perform any intellectual task a human can, with the same flexibility and transfer ability. Still hypothetical; today's systems are narrow.
State of the art (2026): all production AI is Narrow AI, even highly capable LLMs. AGI remains an open research goal.
Many candidates conflate Strong AI with AGI. Be precise: Strong AI = systems with genuine understanding/consciousness (philosophical), AGI = systems matching human-level cognitive flexibility (technical).
Today's LLMs are Narrow AI, even very capable ones.