Artificial intelligence is fundamentally changing the way people use the internet, gather information, shop online, and interact with products at home. If you’ve ever wondered what chatbots (like Gemini or Claude) are truly good for and how to use them smartly, this episode is essential.

Our guest Kevin Roose, a New York Times tech columnist and co-host of the NYT podcast Hard Fork, has spent years reporting on AI and constantly uses these tools. Kevin shares strategies to make chatbots work better for you and reveals which tools he finds best for different purposes.

We also discuss how average people use AI today, what to watch out for regarding kids and AI, and how companies are gaming the system to rank higher in AI search results.

This episode covers:

Optimizing your chatbot experience with custom instructions: By default, chatbots like Claude and ChatGPT can be prone to excessive flattery. To fix this, access your chatbot’s settings and instruct how you want the model to address you. Kevin shares this example of custom instructions he gave Claude:
- "Claude should talk to me informally like a wise and trusted friend. I don't like preamble, just get to the point. I appreciate honest feedback and don't like sycophancy, but I also appreciate praise when warranted. I am not always right, but neither is Claude. I value Claude's perspective and appreciate being pushed to consider views I may not have considered. Don't end every response with a follow-up question."
AI productivity tools to try: Kevin uses NotebookLM to collect research for the book he’s writing. He relies on Cora to summarize personal emails and draft responses for important messages. And he uses Super Whisper to dictate emails and writing.
How to use different chatbots for different tasks: Kevin turns to Claude for creative work, coding, and “matters of the heart” when he needs advice. He prefers Google’s Gemini for research and Perplexity Comet as an AI-powered browser. He uses ChatGPT less frequently (mostly for reporting), because the New York Times company is suing OpenAI and Microsoft over alleged copyright violations.

Products we mention:

Matic robot vacuum (read our first impressions here)
The best robot vacuum: Roborock Q7 M5+
The best pre-lit artificial Christmas tree: National Tree Company 7.5-foot Feel Real Downswept Douglas Fir

Additional reading:

More Kevin:

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Find edited transcripts for each episode here: The Wirecutter Show Podcast

Tips for Using AI Smarter with Hard Fork's Kevin Roose

The Wirecutter Show