AI vocabulary without the jargon
Learn the 30 words everyone uses about AI, each with a plain meaning and an everyday example
A taste of a lesson
People keep saying 'the model'. Is that the same as ChatGPT or Claude?
Close, but not quite. The model is the trained engine: a huge file of numbers that turns your words into a reply. ChatGPT or Claude is the app around it, with the chat window, history and settings. Think of a car: the model is the engine, the app is the whole car with seats and a steering wheel. One company can put different engines in the same car over time. Quick check: if a company says 'we upgraded the model but the app looks the same', what changed?
Written by the teacher as an example. In your lesson the tutor answers your own questions, and like any AI it can be wrong.
What you will be able to do
- Explain 30 common AI terms in plain words with an everyday example for each
- Tell apart related words such as AI, machine learning and large language model
- Spot when a headline or advert uses an AI word loosely or misleadingly
- Read a short article about AI and follow its main points without getting lost
Lesson plan
- 1 The big umbrella: AI, machine learning, model Understand the three words that sit under almost every AI conversation and how they relate. Start
- 2 Talking to models: prompt, token, context Learn the words that describe what happens when you type to a chatbot. Start
- 3 Learning and using: training and inference Separate the expensive learning phase from everyday use of a model. Start
- 4 When it goes wrong: hallucination and bias Name the two most talked about failures and know what they mean in practice. Start
- 5 Buzzwords: generative, multimodal, agent Understand newer words and how loosely they are often used. Start
- 6 Putting it together: reading real text Use the new vocabulary to read and explain a short piece of AI news. Start
Try asking
About this tutor
For anyone who nods along when people say model, prompt, hallucination or agent, but is not quite sure what they mean. Each lesson takes a small group of related words, gives a one sentence meaning, an everyday comparison and a short example you can try or picture. You practise by explaining the words back in your own language and by sorting real headlines and product descriptions into the right terms. By the end you can read an article about AI or sit in a meeting about it and follow what is being said, and you will know which words are often used loosely or wrongly.
Reviews
4.5
4 ratingsSample
- Kenji W.Sample
Good pace for a beginner. Training versus inference was the most useful part for me. A little slow in the first lesson if you know some basics.
- Tunde A.Sample
Clear and kind. The headline sorting exercise was useful. I would have liked a printable glossary at the end, I copied it out by hand.
- Rosa M.Sample
I sat in a work meeting about an AI project the next week and actually followed it. The bit about 'agent' being a stretchy word was spot on.
- Margaret L.Sample
The engine and car comparison for model versus app finally made it click. I liked explaining words back, it showed me what I only thought I understood.
About the teacher
I help complete beginners and older learners feel at home with AI, one plain word at a time
9 tutors 394 lessons taught Sample
I teach people who were told AI is not for them. Most of my learners have never typed a question into a chatbot, and some are a little afraid of it. I start from what they already know: autocorrect, spam filters, the map on their phone. Then we build up the words and habits slowly, with lots of trying things...
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