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There is now an Artificial Intelligence community (public beta) in the Stack Exchange network.

In both communities' metas I didn't find a question regarding the correct place to ask a question that is on-topic in both communities.

What kind of questions can be asked there but not here? This wiki states artificial intelligence as one of the topics covered in this community. What is the motivation to dedicate a community specifically to one of the subjects covered in this community?

Is the Artificial Intelligence community designed to serve multidisciplinary AI research (or not necessarily a particular research but also using AI methods for certain applications) rather than AI research done by computer scientists alone? Is the main difference between the two communities in that it is designed to serve AI from non-computational aspects as well?

There is this discussion in Area 51 though. Do you think that the answer that was given there is satisfying according to the policy of this community? Is there no room here for history and philosophy of computer science, including history and philosophy of artificial intelligence?

I'd like to see the perspective of this community regarding the overlap between these two communities.

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    $\begingroup$ Yea... this meta post is exactly why Artificial Intelligence shouldn't exist. Sorry I can't be more helpful right now. $\endgroup$
    – Raphael Mod
    Feb 19, 2017 at 20:27
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    $\begingroup$ How much much overlap is there? I don't know AI.SE's scope well. AI.SE's help page lists as on-topic: "social issues in a world where artificial intelligence is common, conceptual aspects of AI, or human factors in AI development". Social issues are surely off-topic here. I don't know what "conceptual aspects" means. "Human factors" are probably on-topic here. I have the impression that AI.SE is for non-technical questions about AI. Most non-technical questions probably wouldn't go over so well here. I'm not sure that philosophical questions will be well-received here. $\endgroup$
    – D.W. Mod
    Feb 20, 2017 at 19:47
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    $\begingroup$ There appears to be some debate on Meta.AI.SE about whether technical questions are in-scope there: meta.ai.stackexchange.com/q/1279/1794. See also meta.ai.stackexchange.com/a/1144/1794. $\endgroup$
    – D.W. Mod
    Feb 20, 2017 at 19:50
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    $\begingroup$ I think this isn't hard. Just ignore that AI.SE exists and simply ask yourself the question whether you can ask this on CS.SE. If not, you can ask the question whether you can ask it on AI.SE. Note that the topics of these sites need to be mutually exclusive (but could be, depending on how AI defines its scope.) $\endgroup$
    – Discrete lizard Mod
    Feb 21, 2017 at 11:13
  • $\begingroup$ There are a lot of AI questions/neural network stuff that are purely techincal/implemenation details, I don't think those have anything todo with theoretical CS. $\endgroup$
    – HopefullyHelpful
    Feb 23, 2017 at 16:22
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    $\begingroup$ @HopefullyHelpful This is Computer Science, not Theoretical Computer Science. $\endgroup$
    – David Richerby
    Feb 24, 2017 at 0:22
  • $\begingroup$ AI is also multidisciplinary, its not just CS. Example, biological inspiration for learning mechanisms and also technical mathematical proofs to analyze some methods. AI is not really a subcategory of CS. $\endgroup$
    – Charlie Parker
    Feb 26, 2017 at 5:00
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    $\begingroup$ @Pinocchio CS is also 'multi-disciplinary'. (Although it is rather silly to call a single discipline (AI or CS) 'multi-disciplinary'.) I don't see how the examples you provide cannot fit under CS, please elaborate why you believe they aren't part of CS but are part of AI. IMHO, 'AI' is not well enough defined to be a subcategory of anything. $\endgroup$
    – Discrete lizard Mod
    Feb 26, 2017 at 10:44

2 Answers 2

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See What niche does this AI proposal aim to fill?

tl;dr: a group of people wanted a site dedicated to AI, doesn't mean topics it covers were not already covered by other sites. We will see if the site lasts or disappears as the previous attempts.

Looking at the site's top questions and area 51 statistics it seems that as predicted it had become a site for hobbiests and will get shut down eventually. It has been a year and I don't see any serious ML question among those with +25 votes, which is telling me that they don't even have 25 serious AI experts there. Just to understand the situation, +5000 people attended the last NIPS conference in Barcelona, Spain.

If I were to ask a serious ML question I would post it on cross validated or SO or here.

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As in any question on the Stack Exchange network, you post your question on the stack where it is on topic and where you think you will find the most expert or experienced users who will give you the best answers.

On the occasion when you have a question that might be acceptable on more than one stack, check both of them. Read the questions most like yours and evaluate the answers they received. Consider which stack has proven that it gives better, more in depth, complete answers. Which site has more users, apparently, that deal with questions like yours. Use that research to select the site to post your question on. You can also use that research to determine the best way to present your question so that it will receive more attention and higher quality answers.

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