Statewide Event: AI Basics

Written By Dennis Hicks
View Zoom Recording
Free AI Training with Google for MA Residents

Key Outcomes

Union Capital hosted a community-wide AI education event featuring guest speaker Steve Henshaw (technical principal, CSI Professional Services) and network coordinator Lourdes Ballestier. Attendees ranged from complete beginners to active AI users. The session demystified core AI concepts, demonstrated live tool usage, and shared practical applications for home, work, and community building.

Announcements

  • 71 poll respondents: 63% had used AI before; 37% had not

  • Poll breakdown about using AI: 21% excited, 37% curious, remainder nervous or unsure

  • Massachusetts governor provides a free AI tutorial link covering basics through cybersecurity

AI Basics Covered

  • AI cannot self-learn beyond training data — it can "hallucinate" (produce false answers) when asked about topics outside its training

  • Major models: Gemini (Google), Copilot (Microsoft, being replaced by "Scout"), ChatGPT (OpenAI), Claude (Anthropic), Siri (Apple), Perplexity

  • All are "general" tools — like a Super Walmart for broad questions; specialized needs require more targeted prompting

  • Paid vs. free: Free versions have daily usage caps that reset; paid tiers (e.g., ChatGPT Pro at ~$20/month) extend limits but do not significantly change accuracy

  • AI learns your history: Models personalize responses over time based on interaction history; switching platforms resets that familiarity

Prompting Best Practices

  • Assign AI a role/persona before asking (e.g., "You are an awesome chef...")

  • Provide specific context: audience, format, length, location, constraints

  • Use loopback questions AI returns — they refine your output

  • If unsatisfied, tell it to "think harder" — it will dig deeper

  • Separate topics into individual chats to prevent cross-contamination of context

Practical Use Cases Shared

  • Home: Cooking recipes, car diagnostics (VIN + make/model), stain removal, gardening, home repairs

  • Work/Business: Drafting emails, grant writing, building curricula, creating flyers/graphics, notary law reference, nonprofit setup guidance

  • Learning: Step-by-step Excel/Google Sheets tutorials, YouTube + ChatGPT for self-paced skill building

  • Accessibility: Paste any text and ask AI to rewrite it at a specific reading level (e.g., 5th or 7th grade); useful for dyslexia, ADHD, Down syndrome

  • Translation: Real-time translation of 75 languages now available via Siri and Google updates; bilingual social media posts easily generated

Privacy & Safety Guidance

  • Do not share: Full SSN, date of birth, phone number, medical history, or financial account details

  • Last four digits of SSN is sufficient for identification purposes in most contexts

  • AI used in healthcare settings is HIPAA-protected and not shared publicly; clinic AI primarily handles dictation/transcription

  • Anything entered into AI or done on a computer can be subpoenaed

  • Adjust security settings in tools to prevent your data from being used to train models

  • For suspicious emails or calls: delete/ignore if sender is unknown; if truly official, they will follow up through verified channels

Q&A Highlights

  • Q: Can AI detect if my child used it for an essay? → Ask ChatGPT itself to recommend an AI-detection website for uploading essays

  • Q: Will two people get the same answer to the same prompt? → Very similar for new topics; diverges based on individual interaction history

  • Q: Can you delete your AI data? → You can disable chat history, but data already processed is not fully erasable

  • Q: Is Copilot the same as Gemini/ChatGPT? → Yes, all are large language models; Copilot is Microsoft's, being updated to "Scout"

Dennis Hicks
Next

MADRC Partner Night • May 7