As directly usable AI and machine learning become central to all our lives, we need to know the best way to communicate with our computers. Ceiba explains why learning the language of prompt engineering will soon be an essential skill worldwide.
Prompt engineering is the key to AI and machine learning success
- Unsupervised learning has revolutionized artificial intelligence
- How does prompt engineering work?
- Why is prompt engineering so important?
- Prompt engineering in action across the globe
- How will prompt engineering transform our AI experience?
We are in the midst of an AI and machine learning revolution.
As these groundbreaking technologies continue to transform our work, rest and play, it’s essential that we understand how to interact with the machines driving our world.
Prompt engineering has played a significant role in the way we use, understand and interact with AI and machine learning in recent months.
We explain why understanding prompt engineering could be as important in the future as knowing how to speak English.
Unsupervised learning has revolutionized artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence used to be subject to supervised training, whereby developers used small-scale, structured datasets to teach straightforward tasks by example.
Since 2017, developers have used transformers to engender unsupervised learning, which has transformed the industry. Machine learning models are now pre-trained on vast, unstructured datasets that teach them to perform text-to-text predictions.
The models then learn to identify patterns in the data, which means they can perform a wide variety of tasks – far in excess of any examples they may have been shown.
This is where prompt engineering comes in. Prompt engineering works out the best way to communicate with AI and machine learning in order to obtain the desired results.
How does prompt engineering work?
Some developers say prompt engineering is similar to the popular party game ‘charades’.
In charades, the standard method of communication is removed and one person communicates just enough information so that the other can guess what they are thinking.
Prompt engineering works in the same way. It combines natural language with programming languages to create a flexible, intuitive way for humans and machines to interact.
Just like in charades, the machine is not swamped with information. It receives just enough to work out the patterns and use its own intelligence to complete the task.
Why is prompt engineering so important?
Computers, as every developer knows, are a different world. Interacting with a machine is unnatural and, for most humans, it’s like sitting down and chatting to an alien.
Forcing computers to try and adapt to human communication is a waste of time. Prompt engineering finds a middle ground and works out which inputs will yield the best results.
It offers a new way for humans to communicate with computers that is not too dissimilar to natural language and is therefore the best way for humans and machines to interact.
Prompt engineering in action across the globe
As in most processes, when it comes to AI and machine learning, the quality of the inputs automatically determines the quality of the results.
Designing effective prompts is therefore essential if a user wants a machine learning tool to respond in a useful way.
OpenAI’s DALL-E 2 and GPT-3 are generative artificial intelligence tools that are already gaining traction worldwide. DALL-E 2 produces art and GPT-3 produces text.
Prompt engineering optimizes the results these already revolutionary models can achieve.
While prompt engineering does take time and effort to master, there are a few general tips that can help users as they interact with generative AI tools. Including keywords, giving clear instructions on how you want your answer back, and avoiding ambiguity, can all return better results.
How will prompt engineering transform our AI experience?
Directly-usable AI will soon be ubiquitous, which means even the least ‘computer literate’ person will need to know how to communicate with a machine.
Prompt engineering has yet to be perfected, but it is improving all the time.
It is fast becoming an essential skill for optimizing AI and machine learning interactions and ensuring we communicate effectively with our computers.
As computers become increasingly powerful, prompt engineering will evolve to become the primary method of communication between humans and machines.
To find out more about how AI and machine learning can transform your business, contact Ceiba today.
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Sources:
CoyoteGrowth
