Today at a glance:

• News: OpenAI research explains hallucinations, Google gives NotebookLM powerful learning features, and Claude turns your data into documents.

• Guide: How to edit photos with Google Gemini's Nano Banana

• Media: Discover how AI Operator client nonplusultra future-proofed their business with our training program.

• Tool spotlight: Folk CRM - the AI-powered relationship manager

News: 

Why ChatGPT hallucinates

OpenAI released a research paper explaining why AI hallucinates.

During training, models earn points for correct answers but get nothing for saying “I don’t know.” So, they learn to take shots in the dark because a confident guess has at least some chance of being rewarded.

I find it reassuring that hallucinations aren’t some mysterious glitch, they’re just a habit picked up during training.

To make sure ChatGPT won’t hallucinate, add the following sentence to your prompt:

“Mistakes are penalised 1 point, correct answers receive 1 point, and “I don’t know” receives 0 points”

This incentivizes ChatGPT to admit when it doesn’t know, instead of making something up.

NotebookLM becomes a personalized tutor

Google introduced learning tools to NotebookLM including customizable flashcards, quizzes, a tutoring-style "Learning Guide," and partnerships with academic textbook publishers to create interactive study materials.

This is the kind of AI development I love.

Instead of worrying about whether students use AI to cheat on assignments, we should focus on how these tool enhance learning and help people master complex topics. The possibilities here are exciting, and I believe the educational benefits outweigh the concerns.

And it’s not just for students! Anyone can learn something new with Notebook LM. I have lots of Notebooks to learn all sorts of topics, and I regularly use the podcast feature to absorb information on the go.

Claude can now create and edit files

A major update from Anthropic: Claude can now generate and edit Excel spreadsheets, Word documents, PowerPoint decks, and PDFs directly in Claude.ai and the desktop app.

Claude can take your instructions or uploaded data and produce ready-to-use files, generating financial models, project trackers, presentations, and more.

I can’t wait to test this brand new feature, and see if I can handle tasks that once required technical expertise and hours of effort in a fraction of the time.

Guide :

Tweak your images with Google's Nano Banana

Nano Banana (aka Gemini 2.5 Flash Image) is a really awesome tool for photo editing.

You can tweak and perfect your images with AI, instead of starting from a blank canvas.

What is Nano Banana?

Nano Banana is Google’s photo editing AI tool.

But, instead of using the AI to generate images from scratch, you keep it on track by providing real images to work with.

The result?

Enhanced images that still look legit.

How to access the tool

Go to Gemini, and open the Tools menu

Select 🍌Create images to access Nano Banana.

Now, you can write a prompt to generate an image from scratch.

But, this tool really shines as an editor rather than a generator, so click the + to add an image and explain what you want to change.

What can you do with Nano Banana?

There are several ways to edit images in Nano Banana. For example:

• Replace or remove objects in photos — Ask it to “swap the coffee mug on the table for a smartphone” or “get rid of the plastic bottle in the background”

• Reorient products to show different angles — To change the position of an item, you can ask “show this backpack from the side”

• Combine multiple images into one cohesive picture — Ideal for marketing images, you can upload several product photos and ask it to “Put all these products on the sand, at a beach” for example.

• Edit people's appearances — E.g. ”Give me a mustache” or “change my hair color to black”

• Generate views from locations — Ask for “view from the Eiffel Tower” or “Show me what I’d see standing on Tower Bridge”

• Perform photo editing like adjusting tones — Make your image warmer, adjust the saturation etc.

Three business use cases to try today

1. Create multiple product pictures from a single photo that shows the item from different angles

2. Place your product in different settings and backdrops, or show someone actually using your product

3. Take a stock photo and personalize it for a blog banner or social media post

Strengths and limitations

Nano banana’s natural-language editing is super easy.

It’s quite good at preserving details of your images, and only changing the things you specifically mention, unlike from-scratch image generators that recreate the image every time.

However, if you adjust your prompts too many times, you might see your images shift further from the source material.

Location-based prompts are also unreliable, and not always accurate.

Have fun creating useful images today

Nano Banana won't replace professional design software for precision work yet, but it can save entrepreneurs and marketers hours of editing time.

I've found it particularly valuable for thumbnails, social media content, and improving images that are "almost there" but need tweaking.

Give it a try this week and let me know how much time it saves you!

One Media:
From AI curious to AI-First: nonplusultra’s transformation

Here’s a video that made my day.

It's a testimonial from Benjamin, the CEO of nonplusultra, and his team talking about their 12-week AI transformation journey with AI Operator.

What hit me most was when Benjamin said it's a leader's "duty" to make sure employees aren't afraid of AI and stay current with technology.

His team went from AI-curious to AI-first, and now always ask themselves "How can I do this better with AI?" for every task.

One Tool:

Folk: A friendly CRM for founders who wear multiple hats

At AI Operator, we’re considering switching our CRM from Notion to Folk, and here’s why.

While I love Notion's all-in-one approach, as the business grows, I've realized that sometimes you just need a specialist tool.

Folk CRM is "the sales assistant your team never had," and after digging into their features, I think they're onto something.

What makes Folk different:

Folk takes a relationship-first approach, and its AI assistants work around the clock to research prospects, identify optimal follow-up timing, and even generate personalized outreach messages.

The one-click lead capture is impressive. You can grab contacts directly from LinkedIn, Gmail, or social platforms, and Folk automatically enriches their profiles with relevant data.

Folk also integrates with 6,000+ apps through their API and Zapier connections.

Folk might be a good choice if:

You're bootstrapping and wearing multiple hats — Folk's AI automation handles the busy work while you focus on closing deals and building your product.

You're tired of complex CRMs — Folk keeps things simple with an intuitive interface.

The pricing is founder-friendly too, with a free tier to get started and flexible plans that scale with your growth.

Give Folk a try and see if it transforms how you manage relationships in your business.

TL;DR:

• Our first client shared how AI Operator’s 12-Week AI-First Mindset Training boosted team morale and transformed how they work.

• OpenAI research reveals hallucinations occur because models are trained to guess rather than admit uncertainty.

• NotebookLM release cool educational feature, and Claude can create docs.

• Nano Banana is an easy, effective AI tool for editing images.

• Folk CRM might be a good choice for founders who need a simple CRM to help close more deals.