The notion of nature and purpose of artificial intelligence (AI) refers us to an ontological analysis of this technological phenomenon, in full development in the 21st century, that is, to the search for the meaning of AI in general in the structure of the sensible experience of the world, as it is presented in consciousness, which may reveal the being and essence of the AI entity, beyond the contingent factors that identify it. By means of a methodology close to the Socratic maieutic that asks questions in its dialogic attempt to understand transcendental phenomena, in its double cultural and epistemological dimension, the objective of this essay is to interpret the political, juridical and economic challenges that are proper to the nature of artificial intelligence, in the second decade of the 21st century, an era characterized by the predominance of new information and communication technologies in all social relations. It is concluded that soon AI can radically modify human societies, which demands from public policy makers and legislative bodies in general, the ability to regulate the conditions of use and development of this technology to avoid undesirable scenarios.