How Alan Turing foresaw the era of artificial intelligence

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - JULY 15: An artists illustration of the Alan Turing 50 GBP bank note unveiled by The Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney at the Manchester Science and Industry Museum on July 15, 2019 in Manchester, England. The general public were asked to 'Think Science' and nominate characters from the field of science for the next £50. Alan Turing was selected from over 200,000 nominations for nearly 1000 eligible scientists. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

There is good reason to choose Alan Turing to take us further into the 21st century: his role in breaking the Nazi Enigma codes will play a central role in his depiction on the new banknote. But this is by no means a full reflection of his interests and achievements.

Yes, he helped the Allies win the war: Turing saw a problem that needed solving, and applied his unique mind to the task, harnessing all its vast capacity for insight and creativity. But his significance isn’t just that of his historical position as a wartime problem-solver and a heinously mistreated homosexual man. His scientific gift to the world is still being unwrapped.