Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not just a fictional concept. Half a century of research into the construction of intelligent machinery has resulted in machines capable of beating the best human chess players and humanoid robots that can walk and interact with us. Despite early claims that intelligent machines were just around the corner, progress has been slow and difficult. Consciousness and environment are two of the deeply complex problems encountered. How exactly should we go about building an intelligent machine? Should it work like a mind? Should it work like a brain? Does it require a body? Introducing Artificial Intelligence clearly explains the advances made over the past half-century, from Alan Turing's influential groundwork to cutting-edge robotics and the New AI.