> It's just an optimization algorithm that tries different things in parallel until it finds a better solution to inform the next round.

... which is AI. AI existed long before GPTs were invented, and when neural networks were left unexplored as the necessary compute power wasn't there.

The standard term is Machine Learning (ML). It's not artificial intelligence (AI) because there is no sense of attempting to manipulate concepts (e.g., the classic symbolic conceptual manipulation algorithms, or modern foundation models).

The meaning of AI has been replaced through sheer popularity. Just like you can't go around calling people "gay" anymore when you mean "jolly, happy."