What is ChatGPT?

ChatGPT, developed by OpenAI, is an AI-supported model that has been trained to create human-like texts. It uses a technology called Transformer, which aims to mimic human communication in a variety of contexts. The “GPT” in its name stands for “Generative Pretrained Transformer”, which describes the type of AI and the method of preparing it for dialog with users.

The three most important features of ChatGPT that you should definitely remember for the following article are:

• Conversational capability: ChatGPT can respond to human input and communicate in a natural, human-like style.
• Flexibility: It can be used in various scenarios, from answering questions to creating text summaries.
• Training: It has been trained on millions of websites and can therefore cover a wide range of topics and styles.

More about What is ChatGPT in one of my last posts.

Why is ChatGPT relevant?

One of the greatest potentials of ChatGPT lies in its ability to generate and summarize texts. Whether it’s a student who needs help summarizing a long textbook chapter or a company that wants a quick overview of a report, ChatGPT could provide an efficient solution.

• Efficiency: ChatGPT can summarize long texts in less time than a human.
• Accessibility: It is easily available and can be used by anyone with an internet connection. And in most cases, the free version is sufficient.
• Accuracy: Despite its artificial nature, ChatGPT can usually summarize the content of a text very precisely by extracting important points and omitting non-essential details.

Does ChatGPT work for summarizing texts?

In principle, summarizing texts is one of the main functions of ChatGPT. However, before you start with the summaries, you should note a few important points.

The strengths of ChatGPT for summaries

ChatGPT can analyze long texts and highlight the key points to create a short and precise summary. It recognizes patterns and repetitions in a text and can use this information to create an efficient summary. Here are some of the strengths of ChatGPT:

1. Master large volumes of text: ChatGPT can process large volumes of text in a short time.
2. Identify key points: It can recognize key information in a text and highlight it in the summary.
3. Neutral summary: Unlike people who may be influenced by their personal opinions and biases, ChatGPT provides an objective summary of the text.

The limits of ChatGPT for summaries

Although ChatGPT has impressive capabilities, there are also limitations that need to be considered:

1. Understanding context and subtlety: While ChatGPT is capable of analyzing and processing text, it may have difficulty grasping context or subtle meanings that a human reader would recognize.
2. Lack of creative interpretation: ChatGPT is limited to the data with which it was trained. It cannot come up with new ideas or interpretations that go beyond what it has learned.
3. Incorrect or inaccurate summaries: Despite its capabilities, ChatGPT can sometimes make mistakes or overlook important details.

Conclusion: strengths and limitations of ChatGPT for summaries

ChatGPT is a powerful tool for summarizing texts. It can efficiently identify the main points of a text and present them in a summary. But it is important to understand and accept your limits. It is not a substitute for human thought and interpretation, but a tool that can provide valuable support if used correctly.

How can you use ChatGPT for summaries?

Here are some important steps you should follow when creating summaries with ChatGPT.

Step 1: Clear prompts

To have ChatGPT write an effective summary, always start with a clear and concise prompt. For example:

“Summarize the following text:“

Make sure that the text you want to summarize is immediately after the prompt.

Step 2: Specification of length restrictions

Sometimes you may want a very short summary, sometimes a more detailed one. It is best to give ChatGPT precise instructions on how long the summary should be. For example:

“Summarize the following text in 200 words:“

Step 3: Format requirements

ChatGPT can create texts in various formats. So if you want specific formatting, e.g. bullets or paragraphs, you can specify this in your prompt.

“Summarize the following text in bullet points:“

Please note

• Error checking: Although ChatGPT usually provides accurate summaries, you should always check the results to identify possible errors or omissions.
• Context: Sometimes ChatGPT can miss the context or subtle meanings in a text. A thorough reading of the original text source can help to understand the context and nuances that ChatGPT may have missed.

Conclusion: ChatGPT for your summaries

The effective use of ChatGPT to create summaries requires clear and precise communication of your requirements. With the right prompts and checks, ChatGPT can be a valuable tool for creating summaries.

By the way, the prompts are also called prompts. I have written an entire article on the most important prompts.

ChatGPT for summarizing long texts

The challenge of long texts

Long texts can contain complex thoughts and ideas that are difficult to understand and remember. Sometimes the problem is finding the main points or understanding how different ideas relate to each other. This is especially the case if you are under time pressure and have to understand a large text in a short space of time. Here are a few tips on how ChatGPT can help.

How ChatGPT summarizes long texts

ChatGPT can efficiently analyze long texts and highlight the key points to create a compact yet comprehensive summary.

1. Identification of key points: ChatGPT can recognize key points and topics in a long text and highlight them in the summary.
2. Remove redundancies: It is common for long texts to contain repetitions. ChatGPT is able to recognize and remove these redundancies to create a clearer and shorter summary.
3. Maintaining context: During summarization, ChatGPT attempts to maintain the context and general tone of the original text.

Tips for summarizing long texts with ChatGPT

• Divide into sections: For very long texts, it can be helpful to divide the text into smaller sections and summarize each section individually.
• Customize prompts: You can use more specific prompts to influence the type of summary. For example: “Give the three main arguments of the following text.”

ChatGPT for summarizing company documents

In the business world, the volume of reports, emails, minutes and other documents can often be overwhelming.

Corporate documents can often be technical and extensive, with numerous details and information that can be important and relevant. It can be difficult to maintain an overview and identify the most important points.

How ChatGPT summarizes company documents

ChatGPT can filter out the important information from the extensive texts and create a precise summary that helps to quickly grasp the content.

1. Highlighting key information: ChatGPT can extract the essential points and key information from the voluminous corporate documents.
2. Recognizing patterns: It can help to recognize patterns and trends in the data and display them in the summary.
3. Organization of information: ChatGPT can help present the information in a structured and organized form that is easy to understand and follow.

Tips for using ChatGPT in companies

• Use specific prompts: Again, to get a relevant summary, use specific prompts such as “Provide the key financial findings from the following report.”
• Observe confidentiality: Make absolutely sure that you comply with your company’s confidentiality and privacy policies when using ChatGPT.

Conclusion: ChatGPT for summaries of company documents

Using ChatGPT to summarize company documents can be a valuable time saver and help increase efficiency and productivity. However, it is important to ensure that the summaries are correct and complete and that all data protection regulations are complied with.

The most common mistakes when using ChatGPT for summaries

I have observed the following typical errors in recent months when people have created summaries with ChatGPT. I have (almost) made some of these mistakes myself.

• Over-reliance on ChatGPT: Do not rely solely on ChatGPT for your summaries. It is always important to check the results and revise them if necessary.
• Ignoring data protection regulations: When using ChatGPT, you should always observe the data protection regulations and confidentiality requirements.
• Expecting perfection: ChatGPT is an AI model and can make mistakes. It is important to recognize this and have reasonable expectations.

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Use ChatGPT carefully and responsibly

By the way, I also offer a broad program on the mindful and responsible use of AI technologies, such as ChatGPT and Co. Find out more on my page on AI with foresight.

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Conclusion: ChatGPT for summaries

ChatGPT is a really useful tool for creating summaries. Whether long texts or complex company documents – ChatGPT can help generate a summary according to your wishes.

However, it should be noted that ChatGPT is by no means error-free. You should definitely check the results of ChatGPT again.

You should also observe the data protection guidelines. Does not send absolutely valuable and confidential data to ChatGPT, but works with anonymized information if necessary.

Would you like support?

Hardly a day goes by when I don’t use AI technologies. Even though I am a big fan of nature and sport… I am happy to pass on my knowledge and experience.

I offer individual coaching coaching sessions, group workshops on various key topics related to AI technologies and ChatGPT, give keynote speeches or organize and moderate your next panel discussion.

Just send me a message via WhatsApp message or e-mail.

This article is also available as a podcast episode

Attention! The podcast was created entirely by my AI-Assistant based on my contribution – no guarantee for incorrect content.