Artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly common part of our daily lives, and ChatGPT is one of the most popular AI-powered tools. We have gathered the most important questions about this leading large language model (LLM) to address any doubts and demonstrate how to use it effectively.
1. What is ChatGPT, and how does it work?
ChatGPT is a language model developed by OpenAI, based on the advanced GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) architecture. Its purpose is to generate text in response to user queries. The model has been trained on vast amounts of textual data, enabling it to conduct conversations, answer questions, create creative content, and solve complex problems.
ChatGPT operates by predicting the most likely answers to given questions. It analyzes the input data, leverages linguistic patterns, and uses context to generate responses that appear natural and logical. Its advanced capabilities lie in understanding language nuances and tailoring responses to the user’s specific needs.
2. Ok, but how does ChatGPT REALLY work? How does ChatGPT generate responses to user questions?
We will now describe the procedure the model follows. This explanation is for the most curious readers—step by step, with technical details about the model’s mechanism, natural language processing, and the response generation process.
2.1 Input Data Processing
Użytkownik wprowadza zapytanie w formie tekstu. Model traktuje tę treść jako sekwencję tokenów, które są podstawowymi jednostkami analizy. Tokeny to fragmenty tekstu, które mogą być pojedynczymi słowami, znakami interpunkcyjnymi lub ich kombinacjami.
Example: For the sentence “How does ChatGPT work?” the tokens might look as follows::
How
does
Chat
GPT
Work
?
2.2 Encoding the Query
Each token is transformed into a numerical representation (vector) using a pre-trained word embedding mechanism. This vector representation reflects the semantic meaning of each token in a multi-dimensional numerical space, taking into account the context of the tokens within natural language usage.
2.3 Processing Through Transformer Layers
The GPT architecture consists of multiple transformer layers that process input data. Each layer performs the following operations:
2.3.1 Self-Attention Mechanism
The model analyzes which tokens in the input are related to each other and to what extent. The self-attention mechanism calculates attention scores for each pair of tokens, enabling the model to understand the context of the provided data.
Example: In the query “How does ChatGPT work?”, the model identifies that the word “work” has a significant relationship with “ChatGPT”.
2.3.2 Normalization and Processing Through Feed-Forward Networks
After attention analysis, each token passes through feed-forward neural networks, which perform further computations and enhance contextual understanding.
2.4 Generating Output Token Predictions
After processing through all the layers, the model generates probabilities for each possible output token, taking into account the previously generated tokens and the context of the entire query.
At this step, the softmax activation function is applied to produce a probability distribution over all possible tokens.
Example: The model predicts that the most likely next token after “ChatGPT” is “works,” followed by “on,” and so on.
2.5 Decoding Strategies for Selecting Responses
To generate a coherent response, the model employs one of several decoding strategies, each with distinct characteristics:
Greedy Decoding: Selects the token with the highest probability at each step. This approach is fast but can lead to suboptimal results because it does not consider the broader context of the sequence.
Beam Search: Explores multiple possible sequences simultaneously to find the one with the highest overall probability. This method balances accuracy and computational complexity, often yielding better results than greedy decoding.
Sampling: Randomly selects tokens based on their probabilities, allowing for more creative and varied outputs. By adjusting the temperature parameter, users can control the randomness—lower values make responses more focused, while higher values make them more diverse and imaginative.
2.6 Considering Context in Extended Interactions
If the conversation involves multiple stages, the model employs a context retention mechanism. The entire conversation history is processed as a sequence of input tokens, enabling the model to generate coherent and logical responses that take previous messages into account.
2.7 Postprocessing
The generated response may undergo additional postprocessing steps, such as:
Grammar or stylistic corrections to enhance clarity and polish the text.
Content filtering to ensure compliance with ethical guidelines and safety policies (e.g., avoiding offensive or inappropriate responses).
2.8 Response Presentation
The generated response is returned to the user in text format. This entire process is fast enough to make the interaction feel like it happens in real-time.
The ChatGPT model does not “understand” language in the human sense but relies on statistical patterns found in the data it was trained on. As a result, it generates responses that appear natural and logical while continuously improving through iterative enhancements and updates.
3. What key technologies are used in the functioning of the ChatGPT model?
What technologies underpin ChatGPT, and what roles do they play in generating responses?
Transformer: The core of GPT architecture, enabling simultaneous processing of entire data sequences. This approach differs significantly from traditional sequential methods like LSTMs (Long Short-Term Memory networks) or RNNs (Recurrent Neural Networks). Transformers efficiently analyze dependencies between distant elements in text, which is essential for understanding context and generating logical responses.
Attention Mechanism: A crucial component for understanding context and relationships between tokens. It calculates “weights” for each pair of words in the text, allowing the model to identify which data fragments are most relevant to the given context. This mechanism dynamically adjusts the meaning of tokens based on their surroundings in the text.
Tokenization: The process of dividing text into smaller units called tokens. Tokens can represent entire words, fragments of words, or even individual characters, depending on the tokenization method. Tokens are the fundamental units on which the model operates, and their transformation into numerical representations is a key step in processing input data.
Pre-Trained Embeddings: Input data is transformed into vector representations using pre-trained embeddings. These embeddings represent the meaning of tokens in a multi-dimensional numerical space, based on knowledge acquired during the training process. This enables the model to recognize complex relationships and similarities between words, even if they appear in slightly different forms than in the training data. As a result, this process improves language understanding and allows for generating responses that are more accurate and aligned with user intent.
4. How to Use ChatGPT in Daily Life?
ChatGPT can be utilized in various aspects of daily life, such as:
Task Planning: Ask ChatGPT to prepare a daily schedule or remind you of important events.
Content Creation: Use it to write emails, articles, blog posts, or creative stories.
Learning Assistance: ChatGPT can explain complex concepts, summarize readings, or provide tips for homework.
Information Searching: Quickly obtain answers to various questions without browsing the internet.
Problem Solving: Seek advice on tackling challenging situations, whether in work or personal life.
To effectively use ChatGPT, it’s beneficial to clearly formulate your questions and, when necessary, follow up with additional questions to obtain more detailed responses.
5. How to Ask ChatGPT Questions to Get the Best Answers?
To maximize ChatGPT’s potential, it’s crucial to phrase questions clearly and precisely. Here are some tips:
Avoid vague phrasing: Instead of asking “What is it?”, be more specific, such as “What is a black hole?”
Provide context: If your question concerns a specific topic, include additional information and create context, e.g., “In quantum physics, what does the uncertainty principle mean?”
Ask one question at a time: Instead of asking several questions in one message, break them into smaller parts to receive more detailed and specific answers.
Use examples: If you’re asking about something complex, providing an example helps clarify your query and improves the accuracy of the response.
6. What are the most common applications of ChatGPT?
ChatGPT is used in various fields, such as:
Customer service: Automatically responding to customer queries, generating quotes, or providing technical support.
Education: Creating interactive lessons, generating math examples, or providing homework assistance.
Entertainment: Writing stories, jokes, poems, or game scenarios.
Business: Generating reports, assisting in creating marketing strategies, or analyzing data.
Health: ChatGPT can help find health information but does not replace professional medical consultations.
In all these fields, ChatGPT helps save time and improve efficiency.
7. Is ChatGPT safe, and what are its limitations?
ChatGPT is designed with safety principles in mind. Its responses are becoming increasingly accurate. However, there are a few aspects to keep in mind:
Precision limitations: The model may generate responses that sound logical but are not factually correct. Such hallucinations remain a challenge.
Lack of understanding: ChatGPT does not “understand” topics in a human sense but predicts the most probable responses.
User-provided data: Avoid sharing confidential information, as ChatGPT is not designed to handle sensitive data.
OpenAI continuously works on improving safety by introducing new models and updates. When using ChatGPT, remember that it is a supportive tool and not a substitute for human analysis.
8. What new features does the Pro version of ChatGPT offer?
The Pro version of ChatGPT introduces several improvements and new features, such as:
Higher performance: Access to faster responses, even during peak hours.
Better quality content generation: Utilizing the GPT-4 model, which provides more advanced responses and better context understanding.
Plugin support: The Pro version allows integration with additional tools, such as data analysis or web search.
Advanced chat history management: Pro users can manage saved conversations more easily.
9. What are the benefits of using GPT-4 compared to GPT-3.5?
GPT-4 surpasses GPT-3.5 in several key areas:
Precision: GPT-4 generates more coherent and accurate responses.
Better understanding of complex queries: It can analyze more challenging issues and respond more effectively to multi-part questions.
Wider range of applications: It supports more advanced business and scientific use cases.
Multi-language support: GPT-4 handles translations and multilingual queries better.
We have already discussed the differences between ChatGPT versions in several articles:
The Evolution of ChatGPT from OpenAI: From GPT-1 to GPT-4o | TTMS
What are the differences between ChatGPT 4o and 4.0? GPT 4o as a Content Creation Tool | TTMS
The New Era of ChatGPT: How does o1-preview differ from GPT-4o? | TTMS
10. How to use new features, such as the mobile app mode?
ChatGPT is available not only on computers but also in mobile applications. Using these features is simple:
Download the app on Android or iOS from the appropriate store.
Log in to your OpenAI account.
Use features such as typing or dictating questions, accessing chat history, and integrating with additional plugins.
The mobile app provides convenient access to the tool anywhere, increasing its usability.
11. What are ChatGPT’s limitations in business?
While ChatGPT can be extremely helpful in business (as discussed here: ChatGPT for Business: Practical Applications and Use Cases | TTMS), it also has its limitations:
Lack of specialized knowledge: The model does not always provide answers tailored to specific industry requirements.
Need for verification: Generated responses may contain inaccuracies, so it is always worth checking them.
Limitations in context understanding: ChatGPT may struggle to understand complex relationships between data.
Despite these limitations, when used appropriately, ChatGPT can improve efficiency and save time in many business processes.
12. Why should you use ChatGPT in creative work?
ChatGPT is an incredibly versatile tool that can significantly enrich and streamline the creative process in many aspects. With its content generation and language analysis capabilities, it serves as valuable support for creators at every stage of their work.
First and foremost, ChatGPT inspires creativity. It generates ideas for various forms of expression, such as literary texts, scripts, poems, or visual content. For example, a writer stuck at a dead end can ask for suggestions on continuing the story, while a visual artist can request ideas for describing an image. This makes the creative process more fluid, and new perspectives can inspire the creator to develop their work in ways previously unconsidered.
Additionally, ChatGPT significantly accelerates content creation. It is useful for writing articles, advertisements, or social media posts, where time is crucial. For example, a marketer can receive a catchy headline or promotional content tailored to a specific audience within seconds. A journalist can ask for help formulating a lead for an article or quickly gathering basic information on a given topic.
ChatGPT also excels as an editor. It can analyze existing texts and suggest stylistic, grammatical, or logical improvements. For instance, an editor working on a lengthy essay can ask for the text to be reviewed for clarity or coherence of arguments. This makes corrections more precise, and the text gains a professional polish.
It is worth noting that ChatGPT is a supportive tool and does not replace human creativity. The creator retains full control over the final shape of their work, treating the model as a partner providing raw material that requires refinement. For example, an author can use ideas generated by ChatGPT, but their ultimate form depends solely on the author.
Not all content generated by the model is successful. For instance, poems may appear clumsy, lacking rhyme or rhythm (especially noticeable in Polish). Why is that? Read the next section.
13. Why does ChatGPT write poor poetry?
If you’ve ever tried to create a simple birthday rhyme for a friend, compose a catchy, rhyming story, or write a simple song using ChatGPT, you’re likely familiar with the feeling of disappointment after reading the results.
The poor-quality poems generated by ChatGPT are the result of several key technological limitations, particularly evident in languages like Polish:
Lack of deep understanding of poetic structure:
ChatGPT relies on analyzing language patterns rather than truly understanding the rules of poetry creation. Rhyme, rhythm, syllable counts in lines, or meter are complex rules requiring precise execution. The model cannot consistently apply these principles because it does not “understand” the concept of poetic harmony—it analyzes text as a sequence of tokens, not as a cohesive literary piece.
Limitations in training data:
In the training data used for the model, poetry constitutes a relatively small percentage. For Polish poems, the dataset is even more limited, leaving the model without sufficient patterns to correctly replicate the specific elements of poetry characteristic of the Polish language.
Polish language as a challenge for AI models:
Polish is a highly inflectional language, making rhymes more difficult to achieve compared to less grammatically complex languages like English. Additionally, Polish rhythm often requires matching stress and syllable counts in lines, which is more challenging for the model to generate.
Statistical approach to text generation:
The model generates text based on predictions of which tokens most commonly appear in certain contexts. In poetry, which often requires creative rule-breaking, this approach leads to banal or chaotic results. Rhymes are selected randomly, and rhythm is neglected because the model focuses more on semantics than on form.
Lack of iterative improvement:
Poets often revise their works multiple times, refining each line and rhyme. ChatGPT generates text in a single pass, without iterative analysis or refining the content, which further impacts coherence and finesse.
As a result, ChatGPT may produce works that sometimes sound interesting but generally lack the literary precision and emotional depth that are the essence of poetry. It’s best to treat these attempts as inspiration or drafts rather than finished pieces.
14. How to effectively use ChatGPT for personalized AI interactions?
Personalizing your interactions with ChatGPT allows for better results and increased efficiency when using the tool. Here are some practical tips:
Set a conversation goal: Explain to ChatGPT what you want to achieve. For example, “I want you to write a formal email” or “I need a creative scenario for an advertising campaign.”
Adjust response parameters:
In applications with advanced settings like temperature, you can control response creativity. A higher temperature value (e.g., 0.8) generates more creative and diverse responses, while a lower one (e.g., 0.2) makes responses more logical and concise.
Max tokens: You can limit the length of responses to get shorter and more concise answers or allow the model to generate longer, more exhaustive responses.
Example prompts:
“Provide 3 title suggestions for an article about artificial intelligence”—a specific question that limits the breadth of the response.
“Explain to me how artificial intelligence works as if you were talking to a 10-year-old”—clearly defining the style and level of detail.
Recall context: If your question pertains to an earlier ChatGPT response, refer to it, e.g., “You mentioned data analysis. What tools can I use for this?”
Create a user profile: Let ChatGPT know your preferred response style. For example, “Respond to me in simple sentences” or “Be analytical.” The tool will remember this style for the duration of the session.
Experiment with tone and response style:
“Respond in a formal tone.”
“Explain this humorously.”
“Prepare a list of bullet points.”
Iteration: If you’re not satisfied with the response, ask for revisions, e.g., “Rephrase this more professionally” or “Clarify the second part of the response.”
Advanced techniques:
System commands (in advanced versions): Some versions of ChatGPT allow you to define roles, e.g., “Act as a marketing expert” or “You are a biology teacher.”
Contextual modules: In Pro applications or those with API support, you can load predefined modules or data to increase response accuracy in specific fields.
Using these techniques, ChatGPT interactions become more effective and tailored to your individual needs. The better you define your expectations, the higher the chance of receiving a response that meets your requirements.
15. What are the best ChatGPT prompts to boost productivity and creativity?
Example prompts:
Planning: “Help me create a daily schedule with priorities.”
Creativity: “Write an essay about friendship in a romantic style.”
Data analysis: “Prepare a summary of key trends in e-commerce based on the following data.”
Pro tip: Always test different phrasings of the same query to see which yields the best results.
16. What ethical considerations should be taken into account when using ChatGPT to generate content?
Using AI comes with ethical challenges such as:
Copyright: Ensure that generated content does not infringe on the rights of other creators.
Education: Do not use AI to cheat, for instance, by generating entire academic papers.
Disinformation: Avoid publishing unverified information generated by the model.
Best practices include labeling content as AI-generated and verifying its accuracy before publication.
17. How to use ChatGPT in education without promoting academic dishonesty?
ChatGPT can be a valuable tool for learning if used responsibly:
Helping understand topics: The model can simplify complex concepts.
Creating study questions: You can ask for sample exam questions.
Knowledge verification: Use AI to check your answers but not as your sole source of information.
18. What are ChatGPT’s limitations in providing medical or legal advice?
ChatGPT can provide general information but does not replace consultations with a doctor or lawyer.
Lack of timeliness: The model might not reflect the latest regulations or research.
Lack of personalization: It has no access to patient data or the context of legal cases.
Always verify information with a specialist.
19. How can I use ChatGPT to improve my writing and communication skills?
ChatGPT is an excellent tool for enhancing writing skills:
Text editing: Ask for style improvements or error corrections.
Writing workshop: Generate sample paragraphs on a given topic to inspire your text structure.
Conversation simulations: Conduct dialogue simulations to improve communication skills.
20. What are the best practices for integrating ChatGPT with business processes?
Integrating ChatGPT can enhance business operations in many areas:
Customer service: Automating responses to inquiries.
Content creation: Generating proposals, reports, or presentations.
Decision support: Data analysis and preparation of summaries.
It is advisable to implement AI in stages to minimize disruptions to ongoing processes.
21. How does ChatGPT manage user data and ensure privacy?
Data security is a priority for OpenAI:
No data storage: The model does not save information after the session ends.
Encryption: All data sent to the model is encrypted.
Always avoid entering sensitive personal information.
This guide will help you use ChatGPT effectively, avoid potential pitfalls, and maximize its value. However, remember that AI is a tool – its effectiveness depends on how well you use it.
22. How does ChatGPT generate images?
ChatGPT itself does not generate images as it is a language model. However, OpenAI offers a tool called DALL·E, which generates images based on textual descriptions. In ChatGPT Plus (powered by GPT-4) and versions with active visual functions, DALL·E is available as an additional tab in the ChatGPT interface.
You can use this feature to create images by providing detailed descriptions, e.g., “a winter landscape with pine trees and falling snow.” ChatGPT will help you formulate the description, and DALL·E will generate the image based on it. This feature works in OpenAI applications (on the web and mobile apps) in appropriate versions with active access to this functionality.
23. How does ChatGPT help with presentations?
ChatGPT can assist in creating presentation content but does not generate ready-made multimedia files, such as PowerPoint or Google Slides presentations. The model can suggest slide layouts, recommend headings, create discussion points, or write full slide texts based on a given topic. For instance, you can ask: “What slides should be included in a presentation about environmental protection?”, and ChatGPT will suggest the structure and content. However, the final materials must be created manually in presentation programs.
24. ChatGPT: How to upload an image?
Currently, ChatGPT does not support directly uploading images to the chat interface as it is a language-focused model. However, in the latest versions, such as ChatGPT Plus and ChatGPT Pro, an advanced voice mode with vision (Advanced Voice Mode with Vision) has been introduced, enabling real-time image analysis.
To use this feature:
Log in to your ChatGPT Plus or Pro account.
Activate voice mode: Click the microphone icon in the chat interface to start a voice conversation.
Share an image: During the conversation, you can enable the camera or share your screen to allow ChatGPT to analyze the provided images.
Note that this feature is primarily available in ChatGPT mobile apps and may not yet be implemented in all regions.
If you lack access to this feature, it is worth regularly checking for app updates and OpenAI announcements regarding new capabilities and extensions to ChatGPT functionality.
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