Learning to Use AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) has become invaluable in my personal and professional life. I’ve experimented with various AI tools, starting with simple use cases and gradually tackling more complex projects. This journey has improved my productivity and reshaped how I approach problem-solving and creativity. I’ll share my experiences with AI, the tools that have impacted me, and the lessons I’ve learned along the way.
What is a GPT
A GPT is like madlibs but tries to fill the blanks with serious words like a super-smart autocomplete. You start typing a sentence, and it tries to guess the next word, the next, and so on.
Here’s the breakdown:
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Trained on tons of text: It read all of the internet up to 2021.
- Predicts the next word: At its core, it just guesses the next word based on the words before it. Like:
- You type: “I’d like to order a Big”
- It might guess: “Mac”
- If you tell it you are at McDonald’s, it will guess: “Mac”
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Uses patterns: It doesn’t know facts or meaning like a person. It’s learned patterns in language—what kinds of words usually go together.
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Neural network with layers: Inside, it’s a big stack of math layers that tweak and adjust how it makes those guesses based on context.
- Attention: It pays “attention” to all the words you typed before to understand what matters most right now.
My AI History
1. Writing Product Copy with OpenAI
My first encounter with AI was when OpenAI tools became publicly available. I used AI to write product copy, a task requiring creativity, precision, and an understanding of the audience. It seemed easier to use ChatGPT than to teach a copywriter. The copywriter can review the output from ChatGPT. Because of the limited things you can say about one product, I was confident ChatGPT could write a great first draft.
2. Improving Communication with Grammarly
The next step was adopting Grammarly, an AI-powered writing assistant. While it may seem like a simple tool, Grammarly changed how I write emails and other professional communications. Its ability to catch errors, suggest better phrasing, and maintain tone consistency made me a more effective communicator.
3. Building a Flutter App with ChatGPT
Recently, I have been developing a Flutter app despite having no prior experience in Flutter. ChatGPT has become my colleague throughout that process. It provides step-by-step instructions, explains technical concepts, and helps me debug issues.
4. Documenting My Projects on a Blog
Documenting my projects is valuable—not just for sharing knowledge but also for reflecting on my growth. Blogging has allowed me to consolidate what I’ve learned and teach others.
Lessons Learned About Using AI
- Start small
- Experiment
- ChatGPT is a partner, not a replacement
- Ask ChatGPT better questions with more instructions
- Document progress