← All Glossaries Tech & AI Coding Trading & Finance
A
- Algorithm
- A finite, step-by-step set of instructions for solving a problem or completing a task, independent of the programming language used to implement it.
- API (Application Programming Interface)
- A defined contract that lets one piece of software request services or data from another without needing to know its internal implementation.
- Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)
- A hypothetical AI system that could match or exceed human ability across essentially any intellectual task, as opposed to today's systems, which excel at narrow, specific tasks.
B
- Bandwidth
- The maximum rate at which data can travel across a network connection, usually measured in bits per second.
- Big Data
- Datasets too large or complex for traditional data-processing tools to handle, typically characterized by volume, velocity, and variety.
- Blockchain
- A distributed, append-only ledger in which records ('blocks') are cryptographically linked in sequence, making past entries extremely difficult to alter without detection.
C
- Cache
- A small, fast storage layer that keeps copies of frequently used data close at hand so future requests can be served more quickly than fetching from the original source.
- Cloud Computing
- The delivery of computing resources — servers, storage, databases, networking — over the internet on demand, rather than owning and maintaining physical hardware.
- Compute (AI context)
- Shorthand for the processing power, usually measured in GPU/TPU hours or FLOPs, used to train or run a machine learning model.
- Cryptography
- The practice of securing information by transforming it so that only authorized parties can read or verify it, underpinning HTTPS, digital signatures, and cryptocurrencies alike.
D
- Deep Learning
- A subfield of machine learning that uses multi-layered neural networks to automatically learn patterns from large amounts of data, powering most modern AI systems including image recognition and large language models.
- Diffusion Model
- A generative AI technique that creates images or audio by starting from random noise and iteratively refining it into a coherent output, the approach behind tools like Midjourney and Stable Diffusion.
E
- Edge Computing
- Processing data physically closer to where it's generated (a device or local server) instead of sending everything to a distant cloud data center, reducing latency.
- Encryption
- The process of converting readable data into a coded form that can only be reversed with the correct key, protecting information in transit or at rest.
F
- Fine-tuning
- Additional training applied to an already-trained AI model using a smaller, task-specific dataset, adapting a general-purpose model to a narrower use case.
- Firmware
- Low-level software permanently programmed into a hardware device that controls its basic operation, sitting between the hardware and the operating system.
G
- GPU (Graphics Processing Unit)
- A processor originally designed for rendering graphics that turned out to be extremely efficient at the parallel matrix math used in training and running neural networks.
H
- Hallucination (AI)
- When an AI language model generates text that is fluent and confident-sounding but factually incorrect or entirely fabricated.
I
- Internet of Things (IoT)
- The network of everyday physical devices — thermostats, cameras, wearables, appliances — embedded with sensors and connectivity that let them collect and exchange data.
L
- Large Language Model (LLM)
- An AI model trained on vast amounts of text to predict and generate human-like language, the technology behind chatbots like ChatGPT and Claude.
- Latency
- The delay between a request being sent and a response being received, often the more noticeable performance factor for interactive applications compared to raw bandwidth.
M
- Machine Learning (ML)
- A branch of AI in which systems improve at a task by learning patterns from data, rather than following explicitly hand-coded rules.
- Multimodal AI
- AI systems that can process and generate more than one type of data — text, images, audio, video — within a single model, rather than being limited to one format.
N
- Neural Network
- A machine learning architecture loosely inspired by the brain, made of layers of interconnected 'neurons' that adjust connection strengths during training to recognize patterns.
O
- Open Source
- Software whose source code is made publicly available for anyone to view, use, modify, and redistribute, typically under a specific license governing those freedoms.
P
- Phishing
- A social-engineering attack that tricks people into revealing sensitive information or installing malware, usually via a message disguised as coming from a trusted source.
Q
- Quantum Computing
- A computing paradigm that uses quantum-mechanical phenomena such as superposition and entanglement to perform certain calculations far faster than classical computers, though still largely experimental for most real-world problems.
R
- Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
- Software 'bots' that mimic repetitive human actions within digital systems, such as copying data between applications, without requiring changes to the underlying software.
T
- Token (AI/LLM context)
- A chunk of text — often a word, part of a word, or punctuation mark — that a language model processes as its basic unit of input and output.
- Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
- A login security method that requires two separate forms of verification, typically a password plus a one-time code sent to a device the user controls.
V
- Virtual Private Network (VPN)
- A service that routes internet traffic through an encrypted tunnel to a remote server, masking the user's IP address and shielding traffic from local network eavesdroppers.
Z
- Zero-Day Vulnerability
- A software security flaw that is discovered and potentially exploited before the developer has had any time ('zero days') to release a fix.