What is a Large Language Model?
You've seen what it can do with tools like ChatGPT. Now, learn the surprisingly simple secret behind how it "thinks."
Think of it as a super-powered autocomplete.
An LLM's core job is not to "know" things in the human sense. Its primary function is to predict the most statistically likely next word in a sequence, based on all the text it has ever read.
It learns by reading a digital library the size of a continent.
An LLM is trained on a colossal amount of text data—books, articles, websites, and code. During this "training" phase, it doesn't memorize facts. Instead, it learns the incredibly complex statistical relationships between words, sentences, and concepts. It learns that "The capital of France is..." is very likely to be followed by "Paris."
This one simple skill unlocks powerful abilities:
Writing & Content
It can write essays, emails, and poems by predicting word after word.
Conversation
It can "chat" by predicting a likely response to your question.
Coding
It can write code by predicting the next symbol in a programming language.
But there's a critical catch...
Because it's only predicting, an LLM doesn't have a concept of "truth." This can lead to "hallucinations"—confidently stated falsehoods. It's a powerful tool for generating plausible language, not a reliable source of factual information.
It's All About Probability, at Scale.
A Large Language Model is a marvel of statistics. By mastering the simple task of predicting the next word, it unlocks a world of complex capabilities that are changing how we work, create, and communicate.
Next: What is Generative AI? →