What it means
A prompt is the input given to a generative AI model to tell it what to do, such as a question, instruction, example or document. In many products, the user's prompt is combined with hidden instructions written by the system's developers, often called a system prompt.
Real-world example
A library's chat assistant receives a visitor's question, "Can I renew my loan online?" Behind the scenes, the system adds instructions such as "Answer only using the library's current policies, in plain language, and link to the relevant page", plus the relevant policy text. All of this together forms the prompt the model responds to.
Why it matters for AI adoption
The same model can give very different results depending on its prompt. System prompts encode important decisions about tone, scope and safety, so they should be treated as part of the product, documented, reviewed and tested like any other component.
Questions to ask
- What instructions does the system give the model behind the scenes, and who reviews them?
- How are changes to these instructions tested before they go live?