Mijansk786/Shutterstock ChatGPT AI logo displayed on smartphone screen, with colorful computer code in background, symbolizing AI technology and programming. By: A LOOK BACK AT 2024 | Donald Trump named Time's Person of the Year for a second time “This was the year when artificial intelligence’s full potential roared into view, and when it became clear that there will be no turning back or opting out,” Jacobs said. “Whatever the question was, AI was the answer. We saw it accelerate medical research and productivity, and seem to make the impossible possible. It was hard to read or watch anything without being confronted with news about the rapid advancement of a technology and the people driving it.” In announcing its choice, Time described the sweeping influence these figures have had on society. “It is the story of how Huang and other tech titans grabbed the wheel of history, developing technology and making decisions that are reshaping the information landscape, the climate and our livelihoods,” Time wrote. “Racing both beside and against each other, they placed multibillion-dollar bets on one of the biggest physical infrastructure projects of all time. They reoriented government policy, altered geopolitical rivalries and brought robots into homes. AI emerged as arguably the most consequential tool in great-power competition since the advent of nuclear weapons.”