Ask HN: What's a useful application of AI and/or ML?

develop new materials (stronger lighter materials for airplanes, so the need less fuel)

develop better superconductors (make t3h electric cheaper)

create more efficient solar cells (make t3h electric cheaper)

develop better techniques for desalinizing seawater (make freshwater available in areas where supplies are limited)

discover new drugs (cure t3h disease)

etc., etc., etc.

That said, self-operating vacuum cleaners, lawn-mowers and cars would be obvious answers. Automating X is a fairly easy thing for people to understand. Whether that's where the important applications of AI are going to come from is a different question.

Just as much, do things like walking robots require deep learning or do better with deep learning rather than just regular engineering is a further question. A claim I read here is that Boston Dynamics, of Big Dog fame, was sold by Google because weren't able to convert their walking robots to working primarily via neural networks and I don't know whether a Rhoomba uses "serious" ML or not - they have been around for a while.