ChatGPT
OpenAI's flagship AI — the most widely used in the world. What it is, what it's best at, and how to get the most out of it.
What it is
ChatGPT is OpenAI's conversational interface to their language models. The current flagship model powering ChatGPT is GPT-4o — one of the most capable AI models available.
It was released in November 2022 and changed how most people understood what AI could do. As of 2025, it has over 100 million weekly users.
What it's best at
ChatGPT is a strong generalist — it does many things well:
**Writing** — drafts, rewrites, tone adjustments, editing
**Coding** — generates, explains, and debugs code in most languages
**Research** — synthesizes information (use with web browsing enabled for current info)
**Brainstorming** — generates large volumes of ideas quickly
**Math and data analysis** — with the Code Interpreter feature, it can run Python code
**Image generation** — DALL-E 3 is built in
How to get more out of it
Most people use ChatGPT like a search engine — ask a question, read the answer. That's fine but leaves most of the value on the table.
Three things that improve results dramatically:
1. **Give it a role** — "You are a senior DTC copywriter with 10 years of experience..."
2. **Give it context** — Tell it about your business, your audience, your constraints
3. **Iterate** — Tell it what's wrong with the first response and ask it to try again
You are a [role with specific experience]. I need you to [specific task]. Here's the context: [relevant background]. The output should be [format/length/tone]. Here are examples of what I want: [examples if you have them].
Memory and custom instructions
ChatGPT has a memory feature that lets it remember information about you across conversations. You can also set custom instructions — persistent context that gets added to every conversation.
Use custom instructions to set your name, your business context, your preferred response style. This dramatically reduces the amount of context you need to provide each session.
Pricing
Free — GPT-4o mini, limited GPT-4o access, DALL-E image generation
ChatGPT Plus ($20/mo) — Full GPT-4o access, higher limits, code interpreter, file analysis
ChatGPT Pro ($200/mo) — Unlimited access, o1 and o1 Pro models for complex reasoning
ChatGPT is the best starting point for most people. Strong generalist, massive ecosystem, easiest to learn. Give it a role and context — you'll get dramatically better results.