Amanda Smith is a freelance journalist and writer. She reports on culture, society, human interest and technology. Her stories hold a mirror to society, reflecting both its malaise and its beauty. Amanda's work has been published in National Geographic, The Guardian, Business Insider, Vice, News Corp, Singapore Airlines, Travel + Leisure, and Food & Wine. Amanda is an Australian living in the cultural center of gravity that is New York City.
You likely have multiple questions that pop into your mind throughout the day -- from simple curiosities to existential explorations. Googling is great, but the answers aren't always what you're looking for. You've got to sift through SEO rankings, ads and common search terms to pick the most appropriate reference.
Search results also change with your region, and Google often can't answer specific questions. It presents a lot of information and leaves it up to you to contextualize it all.
Enter artificial intelligence, the new "just Google it."
Microsoft's Copilot has access to the internet, so I can chat with it and go through the links it provides whenever I ask it anything. Copilot came out in February 2023 and, like ChatGPT, has been through recent GPT-4o updates.
GPT-4 Turbo, the OpenAI model that powers Copilot, is now available with the free version. Copilot Pro is available for $20 per month, but it's not necessary for lightweight daily searching.
Here's how to use AI to find answers to your questions and problems. The models are built for question-and-answer.
Think of the range of questions and ideas that pop into your mind every day. Questions about weather, geography, historical events, people, movies, health, food and life. Just look at your Google search history if you want to see the possibilities of what you can ask AI.
As with all AI tools, the answers are only as clear as the questions you put in. You also need to be aware of errors and a bias to believe what AI produces. It's good practice to always check the sources, especially if you're using the information to make decisions.
Asking AI to answer questions is a broad use case, but as you're chatting with Copilot, you'll get a feel for how far to push it.
Some answers will be simple and straightforward, while others will require more prodding and context. For example, asking what movies Leonardo DiCaprio is in is different than asking what movies are similar to one you liked that Leo starred in.
Copilot gave me DiCaprio's most notable films, but I wanted the full list. I also asked for it without graphics, to keep the conversation clean.
It gave me the rest of the (post-2000) list too, and I liked how it bolded the movies with critical acclaim. From there, you can take the conversation in any direction. You could ask if any of your favorites in the list share the same director, request links for reviews and analysis, ask which movie finally earned him an Oscar and see what other movies are similar to the one you love.
Copilot also auto-generates follow-up prompt ideas, in case you're in the mood to go down a rabbit hole. Like "Tell me more about Killers of the Flower Moon," "What awards has Leonardo DiCaprio won?" and "Do you have any fun facts about Leonardo DiCaprio?"
The Wolf of Wall Street is a stand-out, so let's use that example to learn more about similar, non-DiCaprio movies. It gave me a pretty good list, but it did feature a movie with DiCaprio in it even though I specified not to. Dallas Buyers Club, The Big Short and The Social Network were good suggestions with high-stake plots and complex characters.
Copilot is handy because it also adds clickable links in the answers -- so you can click to verify yourself that AI hasn't hallucinated (ie, made up the answer by scraping some weird part of the web).
You can keep going with the Q&As. I asked Copilot what directors are inspired by Scorsese and it generated a list with two names I recognized: Quentin Tarantino and Christopher Nolan. Looking into their body of work could be ideas for follow-up prompts.
You can read more about the art of writing AI prompts for chatbots and image generators on CNET's AI tips page.
We all turn to "Dr. Google" for health questions. It's not to be relied on, as it often goes straight to anxiety-inducing, worst-case scenarios. While AI is trained on current information across the internet, it might help you narrow in on potential answers to more general health, less individualized questions with a clear prompt, pre-doctor visit.
For example, if you're having digestive issues, you might ask Copilot about foods to avoid. You could also use it proactively, like for calculating your ideal daily calorie intake.
You could even ask it to provide the latest research or best-ranking articles on a certain health topic or for answers to quick questions, like when women should start getting yearly mammograms, and why you may feel more nauseous around your period.
But always double-check AI's advice with your doctor. AI's answers should not be taken as fact or in place of professional medical advice.
AI tools are a quick way to get information to help answer your questions. Just like you don't get your answers from the first Google search, the same goes for AI. It's an iterative process, with each prompt getting you closer to clarity. But again, for the final answer, your doctor is the one to consult -- especially as health advice and diagnoses are completely personal and depend on the individual.
