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Summary
There are limits to what ChatGPT knows.
And its programming forces it to deliver what you ask for, even if the result is wrong.
Making too many demands at once is one of severalChatGPT prompt mistakes to avoid.
Iryna Imago/Shutterstock
But it can also come down to the chatbot not recognizing a particular word or phrase you use.
In the following example, ChatGPT got lots of information about the linguistic function of emojis.
The intentionally simple prompt asked the chatbot to summarize everything and explain the links between emojis and cultures.
The chatbot merged both answers into one paragraph.
A follow-up prompt with clearer instructions asked it to dip into its knowledge pool, too.
If you flag up any mistake immediately, the chatbot can produce something more accurate.
Conciseness was its goal.
If left to its own devices, theres no guarantee that ChatGPT will use the details you expect.
So, plan and phrase your prompts carefully to ensure the chatbots summary is spot on.
However, the algorithms knowledge isnt infinite or reliable with real-time factsit doesnt know everything about the world.
Furthermore, it wont always reveal that it lacks data on a particular subject unless you ask it directly.
The following example involves a translation into English.
To avoid major mistakes, be aware ofChatGPTs content creation limits.
This can then affect any text it produces.
In the example below, the prompt asked ChatGPT to summarize four TikTok trends and explain what each entails.
Most of the explanations were slightly wrong or lacked specifics about what posters must do.
The description of the UMG Music trend was especially misleading.
The best solution is to not blindly trust AI chatbots with your text.
Then, youll know how to structure your prompts for the best results.
The test below shows ChatGPT needing several prompts.
It still either fell short or exceeded the word count needed.
Its not the worst mistake to expect from ChatGPT.
But its one more factor to consider when proofreading the summaries it creates.
Be specific about how long you want the content to be.
You may need to add or delete some words here and there.
Its worth the effort if youre dealing with projects with strict word count rules.
Generally speaking, ChatGPT is fast, intuitive, and constantly improving, but it still makes mistakes.
Unless you want strange references or omissions in your content, dont completely trust ChatGPT to summarize your text.
The cause usually involves missing or distorted facts in its data pool.
Its algorithm is also designed to automatically answer without always checking for accuracy.
If ChatGPT owned up to the problems it encountered, its reliability would increase.
