Why did the Ai go to therapy? Answer: Because it had trouble processing its human emotions!

This is the kind of content you can expect with every newsletter. I’m a dad of three boys so I’m going to bring the dad jokes to kick everything off. You’re welcome!

You also may be wondering why the heading shows a lowercase “i” in Ai…well…because I like the way it looks better. Every time I see “AI” I keep seeing AL.

Now let’s get into what this first newsletter has to offer.

Contents:

• What’s It All About?

• Ai 101: A Beginner’s Look

• ChatGPT Plus: How I Built a Cool Tool

• Other Useful Ai Tools

What's It All About?

Ai 4 Normies is all about making artificial intelligence (Ai) tools and usage accessible to people who are new to Ai. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to harness the power of Ai, regardless of their technical background.

Our mission is to simplify Ai through easy-to-understand guides, tutorials, and resources, so you can take advantage of Ai innovations without feeling overwhelmed or knowing where to start.

I’m not an Ai expert or developer; however, I’ve used many tools to create things very quickly and efficiently, as if I was a developer.

The name of the game is: experience, experience, experience! Get out there and try things so you can gain more experience and knowledge.

With a little bit of time, you may develop some great new relationships on the way!

Ai 101: A Beginner’s Look

1. Types of AI:

   • Narrow AI: designed to perform specific tasks, like virtual assistants (Siri, Alexa) or recommendation systems (Netflix, Amazon).

   • General AI: aims to possess the cognitive abilities of a human, understanding and learning any task a person can do.

2. Key AI Concepts:

   • Machine Learning (ML): A subset of AI, ML enables computers to learn from data and make decisions without explicit programming.

   • Deep Learning: A type of ML that uses artificial neural networks to mimic the structure and function of the human brain, enabling machines to learn complex patterns.

3. Common AI Techniques:

   • Supervised Learning: ML models learn from labeled data, where the input-output relationship is known. The model predicts outcomes for new, unseen data.

   • Unsupervised Learning: ML models work with unlabeled data, discovering patterns and relationships on their own.

   • Reinforcement Learning: ML models learn by interacting with their environment, receiving feedback in the form of rewards or penalties, and optimizing their actions accordingly.

4. AI Applications:

   • Natural Language Processing (NLP): enables computers to understand and process human language, used in applications like chatbots and language translation.

   • Computer Vision: algorithms that allow machines to interpret and understand visual information from the world, used in applications like facial recognition and autonomous vehicles.

   • Robotics: systems that control physical robots, enabling them to perform tasks in various industries like manufacturing, healthcare, and logistics.

Are you still awake?!?

You may ask, “Why do I care about terms and definitions??” Well, you may not. But at least we started somewhere and it may help you understand what these tools use.

Now let’s pretend we’re Autobots (the good Transformers) and “Roll Out!”

ChatGPT Plus: How I Built a Cool Tool

ChatGPT Plus is the subscription model of using the general ChatGPT tool from Openai.com. By paying $20/month, you get access to the web-connected ChatGPT 4. This thing is wicked fast and helps you literally do anything! I also created an API key at openai.com. They charge you fractions of a penny for usage.

So, I jumped in and started using it to create a Google web extension as a quick product search tool. Here’s what I asked.

“Write code for a web extension that will allow me to use the ChatGPT API to research the top 3 rated products of whatever I choose. When I click on the web extension, it must create a popup dialogue box, like notepad, and display the results from the prompt. I want there to be a submit button and clear button, in addition to a separate field just to enter in a keyword. I want a constant prompt to provide the results in three bullet points and use the keyword to research the specific product.”

Then it produced files that I needed to save on my computer. I followed its instructions and received errors. I went back and told it what the errors were each time and it kept writing code to fix the issues.

But, after a couple hours, I had a fully functioning web extension that allowed me to just type in a keyword and it would tell me what the top three choices were, using that keyword.

For example, I could type in “baby strollers,” and it would list the top three rated strollers and the lowest price shown for each.

How convenient is that? You don’t have to comb through sites, sites and more sites unless you really want to. You can already start with this list that is made within seconds, and then do additional research. Talk about saving time!

This is just an example of how a normal person, who doesn’t have Ai experience or developer knowledge, is able to create a useful Ai tool without doing anything but giving instructions and conversational feedback.

Other Useful Ai Tools

ChatGPT is the most well known here but I plan on highlighting different Ai tools on each newsletter, in addition to diving in more details as we go along. A lot of Ai tools can be tested without a cost or fee.

So dive in and as Dory says, “Just keep swimming…just keep swimming…”

Here is a brief list of 10 Ai apps that can help you at home and at work, along with their URLs:

1. ChatGPT (https://beta.openai.com/playground/): A web-based interface for experimenting with the GPT-3 language model and building applications.

2. Todoist (https://todoist.com/): A task management app that uses AI to help users organize and prioritize their to-do lists, set reminders, and track progress.

3. Forest (https://www.forestapp.cc/): A productivity app that uses gamification and AI to encourage focus and reduce phone distractions by growing virtual trees.

4. Calm (https://www.calm.com/): A meditation and relaxation app that leverages AI to provide guided meditation sessions, sleep stories, and breathing exercises for stress relief.

5. Otter.ai (https://otter.ai/): A transcription app that uses AI to automatically transcribe audio recordings, making it easier to capture and review meeting notes or interviews.

6. Grammarly (https://www.grammarly.com/): A writing assistant app that employs AI to detect grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors, and offers suggestions for clarity and style improvement.

7. Evernote (https://evernote.com/): A note-taking and organization app that utilizes AI to help users capture, search, and organize their ideas, documents, and web clippings.

8. Trello (https://trello.com/): A project management app that employs AI to facilitate collaboration, task assignment, and progress tracking through visual boards and automation features.

9. Headspace (https://www.headspace.com/): A mindfulness and meditation app that utilizes AI to deliver guided meditation exercises, sleep aids, and mindful techniques to reduce stress and improve focus.

10. RescueTime (https://www.rescuetime.com/): A time management app that employs AI to track and analyze how users spend their time on devices, helping them identify and optimize their productivity habits.

If you enjoyed this content, please share it. I’ll write these weekly to help people understand simple uses with Ai.