# AI Winter **Domain:** Artificial Intelligence / Research History / Funding **Doc Type:** Canonical Historical Concept Node **Maturity:** Developed ## Definition An **AI winter** is a period in which funding, institutional confidence and public expectations surrounding artificial intelligence contract sharply. ## Historical Context The 1970s contraction followed technical disputes, disappointed expectations and institutional decisions including the [[wiki/Lighthill Report|Lighthill Report]] and the termination of [[wiki/Speech Understanding Research|Speech Understanding Research]]. Research nevertheless continued across multiple countries and subfields. ## Historiographic Context The seasonal metaphor can naturalize decisions made by agencies, review panels and disciplines. [[articles/Modern Artificial Intelligence in the 1970s|Modern Artificial Intelligence in the 1970s]] therefore distinguishes a technical failure from a capability that institutions declined to continue recognizing or funding. ## See Also [[wiki/AI Effect|AI Effect]], [[wiki/Connectionism|Connectionism]], [[wiki/AI Benchmarking|AI Benchmarking]] ## Simple Reminders, Quotations, and Thoughts > "The construction of an artificial mind then probably has to wait until we understand better, in physical terms, what a mind is." > **— Lee Smolin**, *2015, Edge annual question “What Do You Think About Machines That Think?”* [[reminders/Risk Debate/Artificial Minds Must Wait for a Physical Theory of Mind by Lee Smolin|Artificial Minds Must Wait for a Physical Theory of Mind by Lee Smolin]] > "What I think about machines thinking is that it won't happen anytime soon. I don't imagine that there is any in-principle limitation; carbon isn't magical, and I suspect silicon will do just fine." > **— Gary Marcus**, *2015, Edge annual question “What Do You Think About Machines That Think?”* [[reminders/Machine Succession/Carbon Is Not Magical but Thinking Machines Are Not Near by Gary Marcus|Carbon Is Not Magical but Thinking Machines Are Not Near by Gary Marcus]]