AI words, in human: your cheat sheet
Half the reason AI feels scary is the words. Everyone throws around "ChatGPT" and "prompts" and "models" like you are supposed to already know them. You're not. Nobody handed you a manual. So here is our plain-English cheat sheet. No computer-science degree required. - AI: software that can write, answer questions, or make pictures. Not alive, not thinking like a person. Just very good at guessing what comes next. - AI chatbot: a program you type to, and it types back, like texting a very well-read helper. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Copilot are the big ones. - Prompt: just what you type to the AI. Your question or request. No secret words needed. - Model: a version of the AI, like a car model. "GPT-4" or "Claude" are models. Newer usually means smarter. - Hallucination: when AI confidently makes something up. Always double-check anything that matters, like a name, a date, or a money or health fact. That is plenty to start. We keep a growing list of these in the community, and here is the best part: if you hit a word that makes your eyes glaze over, comment it below. I will add it in plain English. We are building this together!