Start here
Your no-gatekeeping guide to AI
AI is everywhere, and most people are winging it. The tools are moving faster than the education about them. This guide is built around one idea: AI literacy isn't about knowing every tool. It's about knowing how to think.
The foundations of AI literacy
These three skills are the foundation of everything else on this site. They are interdependent: you can't use AI well without understanding it, and you can't question it without using it.
Teaching AI literacy?
The Teacher's Lounge is your classroom starter kit. The checklist is ready to share, and every article is a quick 3–5 minute read. A full intro fits in a 50-minute period.
What generative AI does
Key point
AI predicts, it doesn't “know.”
When you ask ChatGPT or Claude a question, it isn't “searching” for an answer. It's building a response word-by-word based on statistical patterns. It's a world-class guesser, not a librarian.
Why AI lies with confidence
Key point
Hallucination is a feature, not a glitch.
Because AI predicts plausible text, it can sound authoritative while being 100% wrong. It will invent citations and quotes without a single “I'm guessing” signal.
How to fact-check an AI
Verification isn't asking the AI twice. It's checking against the real world: primary sources, reputable journalism, and peer-reviewed data. Always check the date and never take a citation at face value.
- Check specific claims against primary sources: official data, peer-reviewed research, reputable journalism.
- If an AI cites a source, verify the source exists and says what the AI claims.
- For recent events, check sources dated after the AI's training cutoff.
- Do not ask the same AI again. Use an independent source.
Treat AI responses as starting points for thinking, not final answers.