What is AI, really?
Why ChatGPT and Claude feel so smart, and what they're actually doing.
Tools like ChatGPT and Claude run on a large language model (LLM): a program trained on a huge amount of text until it got very good at one thing, predicting which words should come next. Do that well enough, and it can explain, draft, plan and brainstorm with you.
How it works
- 01It learned from a huge library of text (books, websites, articles) and picked up the patterns of how language works.
- 02When you type a message, it reads it and predicts the most likely next word, then the next, and the next.
- 03Extra training teaches it to be a helpful assistant: follow instructions, answer clearly, and say when it isn't sure.
The world's most well-read autocomplete
Your phone's keyboard suggests the next word when you text. An LLM does the same thing, but it has read more than any person ever could, so it can continue a whole recipe, a birthday invitation or a business plan, not just one word. It isn't looking answers up in a database; it writes each answer fresh, word by word, from patterns it learned. That's why it's brilliant at drafting and explaining, and why you still check the facts.
Where you'll use it
The 6pm dinner rescue
Tell it what's in your fridge and get three 20-minute dinners back.
Your first-draft machine
Turn a messy voice note into a clear client email or product description.
Explain it like I'm tired
Ask it to explain a daycare contract or insurance letter in simple words.
Your nap-time experiment
Open ChatGPT or Claude, paste this in, and watch it build an answer word by word.
I'm a busy mom with a toddler. Here's what's in my fridge: eggs, spinach, feta, half a bag of pasta, cherry tomatoes. Suggest 3 dinners I can make in under 20 minutes. At least one should be something a toddler will actually eat. Keep each one to 5 short steps.