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.

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

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

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

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/

Automated Model Selection

Enhanced Reasoning

Larger Context Window

Improved Vision Analysis

Better Document Grounding

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

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

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore OpenAI's groundbreaking ChatGPT Agent, demonstrating how this autonomous tool can research, analyze, and perform complex tasks on your behalf.

Next, they address important security concerns to consider in the new world of AI agents, introducing practical guidelines for protecting sensitive family data and avoiding prompt injection attacks.

This week's Tip of the Week provides a back-to-basics guide on what AI is and its four core strengths: summarization, extraction, generation, and translation.

In RapidFire, they discuss OpenAI's rumored office suite, Microsoft and Google's own efforts to integrate AI into their office suites, and recently announced AI infrastructure investments, including; Meta's Manhattan-sized data center and President Trump's new AI Action Plan.

The hosts also announce their new Family History AI Show Academy, a five-week course beginning in October of 2025. See https://tixoom.app/fhaishow/ for more details.

In the News:

05:20 ChatGPT Agent: Autonomous Research Assistant for Genealogists

22:49 Safe and Secure in the Age of AI

Tip of the Week:

36:20 What is AI and What is it Good For? Back to Basics

RapidFire:

50:57 OpenAI's Office Suite Rumors

53:56 Microsoft and Google Bring AI to Their Office Suites

60:17 Big AI Infrastructure: Manhattan-Sized Data Centers

Introduction to Family History AI

https://tixoom.app/fhaishow/

Do agents work in the browser?

https://www.bensbites.com/p/do-agents-work-in-the-browser

Introducing ChatGPT agent: bridging research and action

https://openai.com/index/introducing-chatgpt-agent/

OpenAI's new ChatGPT Agent can control an entire computer and do tasks for you

https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/709158/openai-new-release-chatgpt-agent-operator-deep-research

OpenAI's New ChatGPT Agent Tries to Do It All

https://www.wired.com/story/openai-chatgpt-agent-launch/

Agent demo post

https://x.com/rowancheung/status/1945896543263080736

OpenAI Quietly Designed a Rival to Google Workspace, Microsoft Office

https://www.theinformation.com/articles/openai-quietly-designed-rival-google-workspace-microsoft-office

OpenAI Is Quietly Creating Tools to Take on Microsoft Office and Google Workspace

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/markets/stocks/MSFT/pressreleases/33074368/openai-is-quietly-creating-tools-to-take-on-microsoft-office-and-google-workspace-googl/

What's new in Microsoft 365 Copilot?

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/microsoft365copilotblog/what%E2%80%99s-new-in-microsoft-365-copilot--june-2025/4427592

Google Workspace enables the future of AI-powered work for every business

https://workspace.google.com/blog/product-announcements/empowering-businesses-with-AI

Google Workspace Review: Will it Serve My Needs?

https://www.emailtooltester.com/en/blog/google-workspace-review/

Artificial Intelligence, Genealogy, Family History, AI Agents, ChatGPT Agent, OpenAI, Computer Use, AI Security, Prompt Injection, Database Analysis, RootsMagic, Cemetery Records, AI Office Suite, Microsoft 365 Copilot, Google Workspace, Data Centers, AI Infrastructure, Natural Language Processing, Large Language Models, Context Windows, AI Education, Family History AI Show Academy, AI Reasoning Models, Autonomous Research, AI Ethics

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore Perplexity's groundbreaking Comet browser, which brings AI directly to web pages and can autonomously navigate sites to collect genealogical data.

They examine Grok 4's impressive benchmark performance while discussing its limitations for genealogical research and safety concerns.

This week's Tip of the Week introduces "context engineering" - the art of providing maximum information to AI tools through examples, documents, and prior conversations for superior results.

In RapidFire, they cover Google's Veo 3 photo-to-video tool, Silicon Valley's dramatic Windsurf acquisition battle, and OpenAI's new ChatGPT Agent that can control computers autonomously.

In the News:

07:47 Perplexity's Comet Browser: AI-Enhanced Research and Web Surfing

20:32 Grok 4 Released: Benchmark Success, Real-World Challenges

Tip of the Week:

27:53 Context Engineering: Maximizing AI Results with Rich Information

RapidFire:

36:02 Google Veo 3: Transform Photos into Videos

44:19 Windsurf Acquisition Drama: AI Consolidation Begins

53:58 ChatGPT Agent: Autonomous Computer Control Arrives

Official Comet Launch Announcement

https://www.perplexity.ai/hub/blog/introducing-comet

Perplexity launches Comet, an AI-powered web browser

https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/09/perplexity-launches-comet-an-ai-powered-web-browser/

Every: Vibe Check: Grok 4 Aced Its Exams. The Real World Is a Different Story

https://every.to/vibe-check/vibe-check-grok-4-aced-its-exams-the-real-world-is-a-different-story

LM Arena Leaderboard

https://lmarena.ai/leaderboard

TechCrunch: Google adds image-to-video generation capability to Veo 3

https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/10/google-adds-image-to-video-generation-capability-to-veo-3/

Windsurf's CEO goes to Google; OpenAI's acquisition falls apart

https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/11/windsurfs-ceo-goes-to-google-openais-acquisition-falls-apart/

Every: Vibe Check: OpenAI Enters the Browser Wars With ChatGPT Agent

https://every.to/vibe-check/vibe-check-openai-enters-the-browser-wars-with-chatgpt-agent

TechCrunch: AWS is launching an AI agent marketplace next week with Anthropic as a partner

https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/10/aws-is-launching-an-ai-agent-marketplace-next-week-with-anthropic-as-a-partner/

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little discuss recent updates from Google Gemini and Anthropic Claude that are reshaping AI capabilities for genealogists. Google's Gemini 2.5 Pro with its massive context window and Claude 4's hybrid reasoning models that excels at both writing and document analysis.

They share insights from the RootsTech panel on responsible AI use in genealogy, and introduce the Coalition's five core principles for the response use of AI. The episode features an interview with Jessica Taylor, president of Legacy Tree Genealogists, who discusses how her company is thoughtfully experimenting with AI tools.

In RapidFire, they preview ChatGPT 5's anticipated summer release, Meta's $14 billion acquisition to stay competitive, and Adobe Acrobat AI's new multi-document capabilities.

In the News:

03:45 Google Gemini 2.5 Pro: Massive Context Windows Transform Document Analysis

15:09 Claude 4 Opus and Sonnet: Hybrid Reasoning Models for Writing and Research

26:30 RootsTech Panel: Coalition for Responsible AI in Genealogy

Interview:

31:28 Jessica Taylor, CEO of Legacy Tree Genealogists, on her cautious approach to AI Adoption

RapidFire:

45:07 ChatGPT 5 Coming Soon: One Model to Rule Them All

51:08 Meta's $14.8 Billion Scale AI Acquisition

56:42 Adobe Acrobat AI Assistant Adds Multi-Document Analysis

Google I/O Conference Highlights

https://blog.google/technology/ai/google-io-2025-all-our-announcements/

Anthropic Announces Claude 4

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

Anthropic's new Claude 4 AI models can reason over many steps

https://techcrunch.com/2025/05/22/anthropics-new-claude-4-ai-models-can-reason-over-many-steps/

Coalition for Responsible AI in Genealogy

https://craigen.org/

Jessica M. Taylor

https://www.apgen.org/users/jessica-m-taylor

Legacy Tree Genealogists

https://www.legacytree.com/

Rootstech

https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/

ChatGPT 5 is Coming Soon

https://www.tomsguide.com/ai/chatgpt/chatgpt-5-is-coming-soon-heres-what-we-know

Meta's $14.8 billion Scale AI deal latest test of AI partnerships

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/metas-148-billion-scale-ai-deal-latest-test-ai-partnerships-2025-06-13/

A frustrated Zuckerberg makes his biggest AI bet

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/10/zuckerberg-makes-metas-biggest-bet-on-ai-14-billion-scale-ai-deal.html

Adobe upgrades Acrobat AI chatbot to add multi-document analysis

https://www.androidauthority.com/adobe-ai-assistant-acrobat-3451988/

Artificial Intelligence, Genealogy, Family History, AI Tools, Google Gemini, Claude AI, OpenAI, ChatGPT, Meta AI, Adobe Acrobat, Responsible AI, Coalition for Responsible AI in Genealogy, RootsTech, AI Ethics, Document Analysis, AI Writing Tools, Hybrid Reasoning Models, Context Windows, Professional Genealogy, Legacy Tree Genealogists, Jessica Taylor, AI Integration, Multi-Document Analysis, AI Acquisitions

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore OpenAI's revolutionary update to ChatGPT 4o's image generation capabilities, which now creates photorealistic images with accurate text and consistent characters across multiple images.

They interview Jarrett Ross from The GeneaVlogger YouTube channel, who shares how he uses AI in his business and in his projects, including an innovative facial recognition project that identifies people in historical photographs from Poland.

The hosts also examine OpenAI's O3 model's groundbreaking image analysis abilities, demonstrating how it can now automatically zoom in on handwritten text and reason through complex photographic analysis.

This episode showcases how AI image tools are transforming genealogical research while emphasizing the importance of responsible use.

In the News:

06:26 ChatGPT 4o Image Generation: Photorealism and Text Accuracy Revolution

Interview

30:48 Interview with Jarrett Ross: AI Facial Recognition in Genealogy

RapidFire:

52:01 ChatGPT O3: Advanced Image Analysis with Reasoning Capabilities

ChatGPT 4o Image Generation

https://openai.com/index/introducing-4o-image-generation/

What OpenAI Did -- Ethan Mollick

https://www.oneusefulthing.org/p/what-openai-did

The GeneaVlogger YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCm_QNoNtgi2Sk4H9Y2SInmg

OpenAI Releases new o3 and o4 Mini models

https://openai.com/index/introducing-o3-and-o4-mini/

On Jagged AGI: o3, Gemini 2.5, and everything after -- Ethan Mollick

https://www.oneusefulthing.org/p/on-jagged-agi-o3-gemini-25-and-everything

Artificial Intelligence, Genealogy, Family History, OpenAI, ChatGPT, Image Generation, Facial Recognition, Photo Analysis, AI Tools, GeneaVlogger, Jarrett Ross, Jewish Genealogy, Historical Photos, Document Analysis, OCR Technology, Handwriting Recognition, Photo Restoration, AI Ethics, Responsible AI Use, Image Authentication, DALL-E, O3 Model, Reasoning Models, Archive Photos, Community Projects