Official ChatGPT Prompt Engineering Guide From OpenAI

Skill Leap AI
20 Dec 202322:54

TLDRThe video transcript discusses OpenAI's official prompt engineering guide, aimed at enhancing the interaction with AI models like Chat GPT. It simplifies the guide for non-developers, emphasizing the importance of clear instructions, context, and detailed prompts. The guide suggests adopting personas for the AI, using delimiters, specifying steps, and providing examples for better responses. It also covers strategies for handling complex tasks, referencing texts, and giving the AI time to think. The speaker offers a PDF with simplified prompts and mentions Skill Leap AI, a platform with AI courses for further learning.

Takeaways

  • πŸ“˜ OpenAI has released an official guide for prompt engineering to enhance the interaction with AI models like Chat GPT.
  • πŸ’‘ Prompt engineering is about giving clear instructions to AI models to get better and more relevant answers.
  • πŸ“ The guide is broken down into six broad strategies for improving prompts, with practical tactics and examples provided.
  • πŸ” The first strategy emphasizes writing clear instructions, including giving detailed context and asking the model to adopt a persona.
  • πŸ”‘ Using personas can help tailor the AI's responses to specific styles or backgrounds, such as a business consultant or a friendly scientist.
  • πŸ“‘ Delimiters can be used to indicate distinct parts of the input, which is useful for refining output in complex prompts.
  • πŸ”„ Splitting complex tasks into simpler subtasks can help the AI model to manage and process information more effectively.
  • ⏱ Giving the model time to think by working out its own solution before comparing it to given solutions can improve accuracy.
  • πŸ” Summarizing long documents piece-wise can overcome the limitations of the AI's context window and provide more accurate summaries.
  • πŸ“ˆ Systematically testing changes to prompts allows for iterative improvement and finding the most effective prompts for specific tasks.
  • πŸ› οΈ The guide also covers using external tools and systematically testing changes to enhance knowledge retrieval and prompt effectiveness.

Q & A

  • What is the purpose of the official prompt engineering guide released by OpenAI?

    -The purpose of the official prompt engineering guide is to provide a set of instructions to get better results out of AI models like Chat GPT. It helps users and developers to craft prompts that lead to more accurate and relevant outputs from the AI.

  • Who is the target audience for the official prompt engineering guide from OpenAI?

    -While the guide is technically for developers using the API, it has been simplified to offer practical prompts for non-developers as well, aiming to help anyone get better results from Chat GPT.

  • What are the six broad strategies for improving prompts as outlined in the guide?

    -The guide breaks down the strategies into: 1) Write clear instructions, 2) Providing reference text, 3) Splitting complex tasks into simpler subtasks, 4) Giving models time to think, 5) Using external tools, and 6) Testing changes systematically.

  • Why is it important to include details in your questions when using Chat GPT?

    -Including details in your questions provides Chat GPT with more context, which helps it to generate more relevant and accurate answers. It's a way to guide the AI towards understanding the specific information you're seeking.

  • How can adopting a persona enhance the responses from Chat GPT?

    -Adopting a persona allows Chat GPT to tailor its responses in a specific style or tone. For example, asking the AI to 'act as a business consultant' or 'explain like a friendly scientist' can lead to responses that are more aligned with the persona's characteristics.

  • What is the role of delimiters in crafting effective prompts for Chat GPT?

    -Delimiters, such as triple quotation marks or specific formatting, help to clearly indicate distinct parts of the input. They allow users to refine the output and guide the AI in understanding the structure and sequence of the task at hand.

  • Can you explain the tactic of specifying the steps required to complete a task in prompt engineering?

    -Specifying the steps required to complete a task helps to guide the AI through a process in a structured manner. By breaking down a complex task into smaller, sequential steps, the AI can more efficiently and accurately complete the task.

  • What is the significance of providing examples in prompts for Chat GPT?

    -Providing examples in prompts helps Chat GPT understand the exact type of format or response you are looking for. It gives the AI a reference point, which can improve the accuracy and relevance of the output.

  • Why is it beneficial to specify the desired length of the output in your prompts?

    -Specifying the desired length of the output helps Chat GPT to generate responses that are more precise and aligned with your expectations. It prevents the AI from providing overly long or too brief responses that may not be as useful.

  • How can instructing a model to answer using reference text improve the quality of responses?

    -Instructing a model to answer using reference text ensures that the AI's response is grounded in a specific source material. This can lead to more accurate, relevant, and informed responses, as the AI is drawing directly from the provided text.

  • What is the advantage of splitting complex tasks into simpler subtasks when using Chat GPT?

    -Splitting complex tasks into simpler subtasks allows Chat GPT to process and understand each part of the task more effectively. It helps to avoid confusion and ensures that each aspect of the task is addressed in a clear and organized manner.

  • How does giving models time to think improve the quality of responses in prompt engineering?

    -Giving models time to think encourages the AI to work through a problem or task methodically before providing an answer. This can lead to more accurate and well-considered responses, as the AI is not rushing to a conclusion without fully understanding the task.

  • What is the purpose of using inner monologue in prompt engineering with Chat GPT?

    -Using inner monologue allows the AI to process information internally before presenting a final answer. This can help to streamline the output, ensuring that the response is direct and to the point, without including unnecessary thought processes.

  • How can testing changes systematically help in refining prompts for Chat GPT?

    -Testing changes systematically involves making specific, trackable adjustments to prompts and comparing the results. This methodical approach allows users to identify which changes improve the output and which do not, leading to more effective and refined prompts over time.

Outlines

00:00

πŸ€– Introduction to Prompt Engineering for AI Chatbots

The script introduces an official guide for prompt engineering released by OpenAI, aimed at improving interactions with AI models like Chat GPT. It simplifies the guide for non-developers, focusing on practical prompts to enhance user experiences. The document outlines six strategies for improving prompts, with tactics and examples provided. The first strategy emphasizes writing clear instructions, including providing detailed context and adopting personas to guide the AI's responses. The script also mentions the importance of not expecting AI to read minds and the value of giving it as much information as possible.

05:02

πŸ“ Advanced Prompting Techniques and Using Delimiters

This section delves into advanced prompting techniques such as using delimiters to indicate distinct parts of the input, which helps refine output, especially for complex prompts. It also discusses the tactic of specifying steps required to complete a task, which aids in guiding the AI through a process. The script provides examples of how to structure prompts for clarity and efficiency. Additionally, it touches on providing examples to set the desired format for AI responses and specifying the desired length of the output for better control over the AI's answers.

10:02

πŸ“š Utilizing Reference Texts and Splitting Complex Tasks

The paragraph discusses the strategy of providing reference texts for the AI to use when generating responses, which ensures the output is relevant and informed. It also covers the importance of splitting complex tasks into simpler subtasks to prevent information loss and to make the AI's job more manageable. Techniques such as intent classification and summarizing long documents piece-wise are introduced to improve the AI's comprehension and the accuracy of its responses.

15:05

πŸ€” Giving Models Time to Think and Self-Evaluation

This part of the script focuses on the strategy of allowing AI models time to think by instructing them to work out their own solutions before providing answers. It suggests using inner monologues to hide the AI's thought process from the user and checking the AI's work for missed information. The tactics described aim to improve the accuracy and depth of the AI's responses by encouraging a more deliberate approach to problem-solving.

20:06

πŸ› οΈ Developer Tools and Systematic Testing of Prompts

The script addresses strategies relevant to developers, such as using external tools and APIs to enhance knowledge retrieval and implementing functions within the AI. It also emphasizes the importance of systematically testing changes to prompts to determine their effectiveness. The paragraph suggests keeping track of modifications and comparing them to previous versions to identify improvements, advocating for a methodical approach to prompt engineering.

πŸ“ˆ Final Thoughts on Prompt Engineering and Resources

In the concluding paragraph, the script summarizes the importance of prompt engineering and provides a call to action for further learning. It mentions the availability of a simplified PDF guide for non-developers and an online platform called Skill Leap AI, which offers courses on AI tools and prompt engineering. The speaker encourages viewers to make use of these resources to enhance their understanding and application of prompt engineering with AI chatbots.

Mindmap

Keywords

πŸ’‘Prompt Engineering

Prompt engineering is the practice of crafting specific and detailed instructions to get better results from AI models like ChatGPT. This involves giving clear and detailed prompts to guide the AI in generating accurate and relevant responses. In the video, it is emphasized as a key strategy for improving the performance of ChatGPT by providing precise instructions and context.

πŸ’‘Clear Instructions

Clear instructions are detailed and specific directions given to an AI model to ensure it performs a task accurately. The video highlights this as the first broad strategy for better prompt engineering, stressing the importance of giving ChatGPT as much detail and context as possible to get relevant answers.

πŸ’‘Persona

In AI context, a persona refers to instructing the AI to respond as if it were a specific character or expert. For example, asking ChatGPT to act as a business consultant or a friendly scientist can tailor its responses to fit that role. The video explains how adopting personas can enhance the relevance and quality of the AI's responses.

πŸ’‘Delimiters

Delimiters are symbols or formats used to clearly separate distinct parts of the input in a prompt. Examples include triple quotation marks or XML-like tags. The video discusses how using delimiters helps in structuring longer prompts to refine the output by clearly indicating different sections or instructions.

πŸ’‘Step-by-Step Instructions

Step-by-step instructions break down a complex task into simpler, sequential steps for the AI to follow. This tactic ensures that the AI handles each part of the task in order, improving the accuracy of the final output. The video provides examples of how specifying steps can help ChatGPT perform tasks more effectively.

πŸ’‘Examples

Providing examples in a prompt helps guide the AI in generating the desired type of response. By showing ChatGPT an example of the format or style you want, you can improve the consistency and relevance of its answers. The video emphasizes the usefulness of examples for shaping the AI's responses to match specific expectations.

πŸ’‘Reference Text

Reference text refers to specific sources or documents that the AI should use to answer a question. This ensures that the information provided is accurate and based on the given reference. The video outlines how instructing the model to use reference text can enhance the quality and reliability of its answers.

πŸ’‘Complex Tasks

Complex tasks are tasks that involve multiple layers or steps, which can be challenging for an AI to handle in one go. The video suggests splitting these tasks into simpler subtasks to improve the AI's performance. This approach helps prevent the AI from missing or misunderstanding parts of the prompt.

πŸ’‘Think Time

Think time is the practice of giving the AI model time to process and work through a problem before generating a final answer. The video recommends instructing the model to work out its own solution first to ensure accuracy, illustrating this with examples of solving problems step-by-step.

πŸ’‘Systematic Testing

Systematic testing involves making controlled changes to prompts and comparing the results to see which prompts yield better outcomes. The video encourages this practice for refining prompts over time. By keeping track of changes and results, users can iteratively improve their prompt engineering techniques.

Highlights

OpenAI has released an official prompt engineering guide for developers using the Chat GPT API.

The guide simplifies prompt engineering for non-developers to get better results from Chat GPT.

Prompt engineering involves giving AI models clear instructions to improve the quality of answers.

The document outlines six broad strategies for improving prompts.

Including detailed instructions in prompts helps AI models provide more relevant answers.

Adopting a persona for the AI model can influence the style and content of responses.

Using delimiters can help indicate distinct parts of the input for more refined output.

Specifying the steps required to complete a task can guide the AI model more effectively.

Providing examples can help the AI model understand the desired format of the response.

Specifying the desired length of the output can improve the accuracy of the AI model's response.

Providing reference text can help the AI model make relevant references in its answers.

Instructing the model to answer with citations from a reference text can enhance the credibility of responses.

Splitting complex tasks into simpler subtasks can prevent information loss in long prompts.

Using intent classification can help identify the most relevant instructions for the AI model.

Summarizing or filtering previous dialogue can help the AI model maintain context over long conversations.

Instructing the model to work out its own solution before rushing to a conclusion can improve accuracy.

Using inner monologue prompts can streamline the AI model's thought process for clearer answers.

Asking the model to check its own work can help identify and correct any missed information.

The guide provides practical tactics for everyday users to improve their prompting techniques.

Skill Leap AI offers a platform with courses on prompt engineering and other AI tools.

The guide encourages systematic testing of prompt changes to find the most effective formulations.