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The Family History AI Show

The Family History AI Show

By: Mark Thompson and Steve Little
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Welcome to "The Family History AI Show," your go-to podcast for the latest news and views on artificial intelligence and family history. Join Steve Little, world-class authority in AI and genealogy, and Mark Thompson, professional genealogist, educator, and technology expert, as they explore the fascinating intersection of family history and AI. In each episode, Mark and Steve unpack the latest news and tools in AI, delivering clear, accessible insights on how you can transform your personal genealogy journey using AI and how AI is reshaping the genealogy community as a whole.Copyright 2024 The Family History AI Show Politics & Government
Episodes
  • EP33: ChatGPT 5 Aftermath, Nano Banana Image Revolution, Save Time with AI Citations, Anthropic Changes its Stance on Chat Privacy, The AI Browser Wars Heat Up
    Sep 10 2025

    Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little return from summer break to discuss the mixed reception of ChatGPT 5 and how OpenAI responded to user feedback.

    They explore Google's game-changing Nano Banana (Gemini Flash Image) model that revolutionizes selective image editing, reigniting debates about AI photo restoration in genealogy.

    This week's Tip of the Week emphasizes not letting perfect be the enemy of the good, especially when it comes to AI-powered citation. Mark shares his experience with 100 citations as part of the WikiTree Challenge.

    In RapidFire, they cover Apple's possible Gemini partnership, new AI study modes for back-to-school season, Anthropic's copyright settlement, and controversial changes to its privacy policy. They close with escalating skirmishes in the escalating AI browser wars.

    Timestamps:

    In the News:

    05:14 ChatGPT 5 Launch Aftermath: Mixed Reception and Quick Fixes

    17:15 Nano Banana: Google's Game-Changing Image Editing Model

    Tip of the Week:

    32:38 Don't Let Perfect Be the Enemy of Good: Building Citation Prompts

    RapidFire:

    43:27 Apple Explores Google Gemini Partnership for Siri

    47:16 Back to School: AI Study Modes from ChatGPT and Gemini

    53:00 Anthropic Settles Copyright Lawsuit with Authors

    56:29 Anthropic Reverses Privacy Stance on Training Data

    60:55 AI Browser Wars: Anthropic and Google Enter the Fray

    Resource Links

    Intro to Family History AI by the Family History AI Show Academy

    https://tixoom.app/fhaishow

    Mass Intelligence by Ethan Mollick

    https://www.oneusefulthing.org/p/mass-intelligence

    Create and edit images with Gemini

    https://deepmind.google/models/gemini/image/

    Google take 'giant leap' with launch of 'Nano Banana'

    https://www.uniladtech.com/news/ai/google-giant-leap-nano-banana-launch-image-editing-305898-20250828

    Apple Explores Using Google Gemini AI to Power Revamped Siri

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-22/apple-explores-using-google-gemini-ai-to-power-revamped-siri

    Guided Learning in Gemini: From answers to understanding

    https://blog.google/outreach-initiatives/education/guided-learning/

    Introducing study mode

    https://openai.com/index/chatgpt-study-mode/

    Anthropic Settles Copyright Lawsuit

    https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/anthropics-surprise-settlement-adds-new-wrinkle-ai-copyright-war-2025-08-27/

    Anthropic Updates Data Policy

    https://www.anthropic.com/news/updates-to-our-consumer-terms

    New Opt-Out Policy Reverses Stance on Using Consumer Data for AI Training

    https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/28/anthropic-users-face-a-new-choice-opt-out-or-share-your-data-for-ai-training/

    Anthropic launches a Claude AI agent that lives in Chrome

    https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/26/anthropic-launches-a-claude-ai-agent-that-lives-in-chrome/

    Google is launching a Gemini integration in Chrome

    https://techcrunch.com/2025/05/20/google-is-launching-a-gemini-integration-in-chrome/

    Tags

    Artificial Intelligence, Genealogy, Family History, Technology, ChatGPT, OpenAI, Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude, Image Editing, Nano Banana, AI Photography, Citation Management, WikiTree, AI Study Modes, Copyright Law, Privacy Policy, Browser Extensions, AI Training Data, Photo Restoration, Apple Siri, Educational AI, Model Selection, AI Ethics, Chrome Integration

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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • EP32: ChatGPT-5 Arrives, Study Mode for ChatGPT, Claude 4.1 Upgrade, OpenAI Goes Open Source, Earnings Season Good for Big AI, Google Loses Another Monopoly Appeal
    Aug 11 2025

    Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore the groundbreaking release of ChatGPT-5, which arrived after over a year of anticipation. They discuss how this new model transforms the AI landscape with better reasoning, larger context windows, and dramatically reduced hallucinations.

    The hosts examine OpenAI's new Study and Learn Mode, which acts as a personal tutor rather than just providing answers, making it ideal for genealogists who want to deepen their understanding of their favourite topic.

    This week's Tip of the Week cautions beginners about challenging AI tasks like handwritten transcriptions and structured files, recommending they master the basics first.

    In RapidFire, they cover OpenAI's first open-source release since 2019, NotebookLM's video capabilities, and impressive AI company earnings reports.

    Timestamps:

    In the News:

    00:55 ChatGPT-5 Has Arrived: Improved Features (mostly) for Genealogists

    16:29 OpenAI's Study and Learn Mode: Your Personal Genealogy Tutor

    23:40 Claude Releases Opus 4.1: Enhanced Reasoning and Writing

    Tip of the Week:

    29:25 AI Tasks for Beginners to Be Cautious Of

    RapidFire:

    40:16 OpenAI Releases First Open Source Model Since 2019

    48:33 NotebookLM Upgrade Adds Video Support

    53:34 AI Companies Report Record Earnings

    Resource Links

    Introduction to Family History AI

    https://tixoom.app/fhaishow/

    OpenAI GPT-5 Model Card

    https://openai.com/index/gpt-5-system-card/

    Introducing study mode

    https://openai.com/index/chatgpt-study-mode/

    ChatGPT Study Mode - FAQ

    https://help.openai.com/en/articles/11780217-chatgpt-study-mode-faq

    Claude Opus 4.1

    https://www.anthropic.com/news/claude-opus-4-1

    OpenAI announces two "gpt-oss" open AI models

    https://arstechnica.com/ai/2025/08/openai-releases-its-first-open-source-models-since-2019/

    Google's NotebookLM rolls out Video Overviews

    https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/29/googles-notebooklm-rolls-out-video-overviews/

    Tech bubble going pop: AI pays the price for inflated expectations

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/aug/07/the-guardian-view-on-a-tech-bubble-going-pop-ai-pays-the-price-for-inflated-expectations

    Is The AI Bubble About To Burst?

    https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2024/08/07/is-the-ai-bubble-about-to-burst/

    Google loses appeal in antitrust battle with Fortnite maker

    https://masslawyersweekly.com/2025/08/06/google-play-monopoly-verdict-epic-games-win/

    Department of Justice Prevails in Landmark Antitrust Case Against Google

    https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-justice-prevails-landmark-antitrust-case-against-google

    Tags

    Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Genealogy, Family History, OpenAI, ChatGPT-5, Claude, Large Language Models, AI Learning Tools, Study Mode, Open Source AI, NotebookLM, Video Overviews, AI Reasoning, Context Windows, Hallucination Reduction, GEDCOM Files, Handwritten Transcription, Document Analysis, AI Earnings, Google Antitrust, Apache License, Local AI Processing, Privacy, AI Education, Tutoring Systems, Coding Capabilities, Multilingual Processing, AI Development, Family History Research, Genealogists, AI Tools, Machine Learning

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    1 hr and 2 mins
  • EP31: Special Episode - ChatGPT-5 Finally Drops with Big Improvements for Genealogists
    Aug 8 2025

    Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little deliver a special same-day episode covering the long-awaited release of ChatGPT-5, which launched today, August 7, 2025.

    They explore the most significant improvements in the upgrade for genealogists, including automated model selection that eliminates confusing settings for beginners, enhanced reasoning capabilities that reduce hallucinations by 45%, and big increase in the amount of information or documents that can be processed at once.

    Mark demonstrates ChatGPT-5's improved image analysis with cabinet card photos, revealing how the model now provides research suggestions automatically.

    This extra podcast also announces the launch of the Family History AI Show Academy, with Mark and Steve's first five-week course... "Introduction to Family History AI" beginning October 14th.

    Introduction to Family History AI with Mark Thompson and Steve Little

    https://tixoom.app/fhaishow/

    Key Features Highlighted:

    Automated Model Selection

    Enhanced Reasoning

    Larger Context Window

    Improved Vision Analysis

    Better Document Grounding

    Resource Links:

    Introduction to Family History AI

    https://tixoom.app/fhaishow/

    GPT-5 is here

    https://openai.com/gpt-5/

    Introducing GPT-5

    https://openai.com/index/introducing-gpt-5/

    OpenAI launches new GPT-5 model for all ChatGPT users

    https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/07/openai-launches-gpt-5-model-for-all-chatgpt-users.html

    Tags:

    Artificial Intelligence, Genealogy, Family History, OpenAI, ChatGPT-5, AI Tools, Emergency Podcast, Model Selection, Reasoning Models, Context Window, Image Analysis, Cabinet Cards, Handwritten Text Recognition, Document Processing, Hallucination Reduction, AI Education, Family History AI Show Academy, Research Automation, Vision Analysis, Agentic AI, Professional Genealogy

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    24 mins
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