Introduction

This chapter introduces simple prompting techniques as well as terminology. In order to understand prompting/prompt engineering, you first need to understand some very basic AI concepts. If you already know about the below topics, feel free to skip ahead.

What is AI?​

For our purposes, artificial intelligence (AI) is a field in which people have created "smart" algorithms that "think" like humans1. These algorithms can write essays, solve math problems, and create art. Recent advances in the field have created AIs so advanced that they can write convincing sales emails and news articles and even win art competitions.

AI is currently revolutionizing many industries, including journalism, healthcare, and education. If you have not already, you will likely see it deployed in your workplace/classroom soon. Although AI is extremely useful, it requires humans to direct it on what to do. Often AIs are like very smart five-year-olds. They can do a lot of things, but they need careful instruction to do them well.

Being able to direct AIs properly is a very powerful skill. So, how do you communicate with them? The AIs this course discusses are understanding English (and other languages), so we can usually just describe tasks that we want to be done. For example, we can tell an AI to Write an essay about the benefits of AI and it would say2:

In recent years, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a hot topic among the tech world. With its potential to revolutionize many aspects of our lives, AI is becoming increasingly relevant as technology continues to develop. From its applications in healthcare and transportation to its use in education and manufacturing, AI has already shown us its immense potential to benefit society in multiple ways.

The most obvious benefit of AI is its ability to automate mundane tasks. AI systems can be used to automate large-scale operations, such as data analysis, customer service, and even the production of goods. This frees human labor to focus on complex, creative tasks requiring more human intelligence and ingenuity. AI can also be used to analyze large amounts of data and make decisions in a fraction of the time it would take a human. This can be beneficial in industries such as finance, where AI can detect patterns in the stock market and offer insights that would otherwise go unnoticed.

AI can also be used to make predictions and generate insights that can be used to improve efficiency and accuracy. For instance, AI can be used to predict customer trends and preferences, helping businesses make better decisions and increase profits. AI can also be used to identify potential risks and opportunities in various industries, such as finance, healthcare, and manufacturing. This can help companies make informed decisions and reduce the risk of costly mistakes.

Finally, AI can be used to improve our understanding of the world. AI can be used to analyze large datasets and generate insights that can be used to understand the world around us better. This can be used to help us better understand the impacts of climate change, develop new treatments for diseases, and even predict events such as earthquakes and floods.

Overall, AI has the potential to revolutionize many aspects of our lives. From automating mundane tasks to generating insights and predictions, AI can be used to improve efficiency, accuracy, and our understanding of the world. As technology continues to develop, AI will become increasingly relevant and its potential to benefit society will only grow.

Why should I care?​

AI can be used to automate tasks that you spend countless hours doing right now. We mentioned several examples above, but you can also consider any slightly repetitive task you do. It could be writing emails, writing reports, or even writing code. If you can describe the task to an AI, it can likely either do it for you or at least give you a starting point.

How do I get started?​

Read the rest of this chapter, then check out other chapters that interest you.

Before reading the next article, it is important to note that you don't need any technical background to do prompt engineering. Most of it is trial and error; you can learn as you go.

Embeds​

Here is an image of what an embed looks like: