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

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore how DeepSeek has dramatically changed the AI landscape by releasing a powerful, inexpensive, open-source model that challenges American dominance in AI.

They celebrate the first anniversary of FamilySearch's Full-Text Search, which has expanded from three collections to three thousand in just one-year, revolutionizing access to billions of previously unsearchable records.

Mark and Steve examine how Google and Microsoft are integrating AI into their productivity platforms, making these tools accessible to mainstream family historians at minimal cost.

This week's Tip of the Week demystifies the difference between instructional and reasoning AI models, helping genealogists choose the right tool for the right job.

In RapidFire, they discuss the ambitious $500 billion Project Stargate, major model updates from Gemini and Grok, and how Deep Research capabilities are becoming standard across all AI platforms.

In the News:

04:34 DeepSeek Shakes the AI World: Game-Changing Model from China

15:51 FamilySearch Full-Text Search Turns One: From Thousands to Billions of Records

23:33 Google and Microsoft Go All-In: AI Integrated into Workspace Tools

Tip of the Week:

29:22 Know Your Model: Understanding Instructional vs. Reasoning AI

RapidFire:

42:25 The Stargate Project: $500 Billion AI Infrastructure Initiative

45:38 Major Model Updates: Gemini 2.0 and Grok 3 Beta Released

48:41 Deep Research Becomes Industry Standard: Available Across All Major Platforms

DeepSeek Backgrounder

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeepSeek

Family Search Free Text Search

https://www.familysearch.org/search/full-text/collection/list

Free Text Search of Ireland, Properties, from 1298 to 1975

https://www.familysearch.org/search/full-text/collection/M9J1-ZYL

Copilot is now included in Microsoft 365 Personal and Family

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/01/16/copilot-is-now-included-in-microsoft-365-personal-and-family/

Google AI now Included in Workspace Plans

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

Introducing OpenAI o1

https://openai.com/o1/

OpenAI o3-mini

https://openai.com/index/openai-o3-mini/

Announcing The Stargate Project

https://openai.com/index/announcing-the-stargate-project/

Gemini 2.0 is now available to everyone

https://blog.google/technology/google-deepmind/gemini-model-updates-february-2025/

Grok 3 Beta — The Age of Reasoning Agents

https://x.ai/blog/grok-3

Try Deep Research

https://blog.google/products/gemini/google-gemini-deep-research/

Introducing deep research from OpenAI

https://openai.com/index/introducing-deep-research/

Introducing Perplexity Deep Research

https://www.perplexity.ai/hub/blog/introducing-perplexity-deep-research

Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Genealogy, Family History, DeepSeek, AI Models, FamilySearch, Full-Text Search, Open Source AI, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Reasoning Models, Instructional Models, Language Models, Stargate Project, AI Infrastructure, Research Tools, Deep Research, AI Capabilities

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little share their predictions for artificial intelligence developments in 2025, with a special focus on how these changes will affect genealogists and family historians.

They explore the emergence of AI agents, the shift to running language models locally on personal devices, and the introduction of chatbots to social media platforms. Mark and Steve also discuss how AI writing tools will become mainstream, even as costs decrease and capabilities increase.

Their predictions include both opportunities and challenges, examining which tools may thrive and which may disappoint in the coming year. They conclude with "anti-predictions" – capabilities that, despite high hopes, probably won't materialize in 2025.

What We Can Look Forward to In 2025

01:02 AI Agents: The Next Big Thing

08:06 Local Language Models: Improved Privacy and Security

13:09 Social Media Chatbots: Coming to Your Groups

18:24 AI Writing Tools: The New Normal

24:16 AI Costs: Dropping Fast

30:43 The AI Horse Race: Who Will Lead?

Anti-Predictions: What Won't Happen in 2025

36:01 Handwritten Text Recognition

40:21 AI Generated Family Trees and Diagrams

44:06 Generated Text in Images

Using Claude for 'Computer Use' Tasks

https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/build-with-claude/computer-use

OpenAI's Operator Agent

https://openai.com/index/introducing-operator/

Facebook's New AI Tool for Groups

https://aigenealogyinsights.com/2024/10/22/exploring-facebooks-new-ai-tool-for-groups/

What to Know About DeepSeek and How It Is Upending A.I. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/27/technology/what-is-deepseek-china-ai.html

Trump's $500B Stargate AI Initiative https://www.forbes.com/sites/ronshevlin/2025/01/23/trumps-ai-push-understanding-the-500-billion-stargate-initiative/

artificial intelligence, technology, genealogy, family history, AI predictions, AI agents, local AI, social media, chatbots, AI writing, language models, OpenAI, DeepSeek, privacy, security, AI costs, machine learning, computer automation, research tools, future technology

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore Google's powerful end-of-year releases that challenge other AI platforms. They examine Google's Deep Research tool and its ability to quickly create comprehensive research reports by combining information from multiple sources.

Next, they discuss Facebook's controversial introduction of AI assistants to Facebook groups and what this might mean for genealogy communities.

The hosts review Google's NotebookLM's significant updates, including enhanced audio capabilities and collaborative features that could transform how genealogists work together.

This week's Tip of the Week demonstrates how ChatGPT Projects can organize and enhance genealogical research, with Steve using his approach to a 2025 genealogy do-over as an example.

In RapidFire, they cover Google's new fact benchmark, Gemini 2.0's release, AI-enhanced search results, and OpenAI's O3 announcement.

In the News:

06:44 Google Deep Research: The New Challenger to Perplexity

18:03 Facebook Groups Get AI Assistants

24:57 NotebookLM: Major Updates for Collaborative Projects

Tip of the Week:

32:15 ChatGPT Projects: Organizing Your Genealogy Do-Over

RapidFire:

41:52 Google's New Fact Benchmark

44:00 Gemini 2.0 Release

48:34 Google AI-Enhanced Search Results

54:48 OpenAI's O3 Model Announcement

AI Seminar at the Victoria Genealogical Society

https://victoriags.org/content.aspx?page_id=4091&club_id=554933&item_id=2488526

Legacy Family Tree Webinars: "Genealogy Meets AI: Panel Discussion"

https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/genealogy-meets-ai-panel-discussion/

Introducing Gemini 2.0: our new AI model for the agentic era

https://blog.google/technology/google-deepmind/google-gemini-ai-update-december-2024/

Certified Arborist Facebook Group

https://www.facebook.com/groups/12652295162

Exploring Facebook's New AI Tool for Groups

https://aigenealogyinsights.com/2024/10/22/exploring-facebooks-new-ai-tool-for-groups/

NotebookLM gets a new look, audio interactivity and a premium version

https://blog.google/technology/google-labs/notebooklm-new-features-december-2024/

Using Projects in ChatGPT

https://help.openai.com/en/articles/10169521-using-projects-in-chatgpt

A new benchmark for evaluating the accuracy of large language models

https://deepmind.google/discover/blog/facts-grounding-a-new-benchmark-for-evaluating-the-

factuality-of-large-language-models/

AI Overviews in Search are coming to more places around the world

https://blog.google/products/search/ai-overviews-search-october-2024/

OpenAI announces new o3 models

https://techcrunch.com/2024/12/20/openai-announces-new-o3-model/

AI, Artificial Intelligence, Genealogy, Family History, Technology, OpenAI, Google, Perplexity, ChatGPT, Meta, Content Licensing, AI Conferences, AI Outage, Ethical AI, Disclosure, Genealogy Research, OpenAI Licensing, Google AI Issues, Perplexity Pages, ChatGPT Updates, Meta AI Developments, Grok.AI, AI in Genealogy, AI Tools, Technology in Genealogy, AI Transparency, AI and Privacy

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore OpenAI's "12 Days of OpenAI" campaign, particularly focusing on their new reasoning models and the expanded availability of Canvas across all ChatGPT models.

They examine how ChatGPT's new camera view in Advanced Voice Mode transforms mobile research capabilities, demonstrating real-world applications for genealogists.

This week's Tip of the Week reveals how to get the most out of free AI tools by leveraging each one's strengths: Gemini for summarization, Perplexity for research, ChatGPT for reasoning, and Claude for writing.

In RapidFire, they discuss Apple's cautious AI updates in iOS 18.2, the release of GPT Search for free account holders, Harvard's million-book donation for AI training, and OpenAI's festive Santa Chat feature.

In the News:

02:41 12 Days of OpenAI: New Features and Updates

12:15 Canvas Integration: Now Available Across All Models

17:24 Advanced Voice Mode: ChatGPT Gets Camera View

Tip of the Week:

23:29 Maximizing Free AI Tools: The Right Tool for Each Task

RapidFire:

35:52 Apple Intelligence: iOS 18.2 AI Features

40:20 Free GPT Search Goes Public

45:22 Harvard's Million-Book Donation for AI Training

51:52 OpenAI's Santa Chat Mode

Resource LinksChatGPT

https://chatgpt.com/

12 Days of OpenAI

https://openai.com/12-days/

ChatGPT Canvas Feature

https://www.tomsguide.com/ai/chatgpt/openai-announces-official-launch-of-canvas-for-writing-and-coding-heres-whats-new

ChatGPT Projects Feature

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcB97h3vrzk

GPT Search is now free

https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnkoetsier/2024/12/16/chatgpt-search-now-free-for-all-heres-why-you-should-try-it/

Advanced Voice Mode with Vision

https://www.tomsguide.com/ai/chatgpt/chatgpt-advanced-voice-with-vision-just-launched-heres-how-to-try-it

ChatGPT Search and the Chrome Extension

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

Claude

https://claude.ai

Claude Projects

https://www.anthropic.com/news/projects

Gemini

https://gemini.google.com

Perplexity AI

https://www.perplexity.ai

Perplexity Pages

https://www.perplexity.ai/hub/blog/perplexity-pages

Apple Intelligence

https://www.apple.com/apple-intelligence

Harvard Digital Collections

https://hls.harvard.edu/today/harvards-library-innovation-lab-launches-initiative-to-use-public-domain-data-to-train-artificial-intelligence/

https://institutionaldatainitiative.org/

ChatGPT Santa Mode

https://help.openai.com/en/articles/10139238-santa-s-voice-in-chatgpt

Artificial Intelligence, Genealogy, OpenAI, Family History Research, Voice Technology, ChatGPT, AI Tools, Content Creation, Canvas, 12 Days of OpenAI

Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little reveal their top recommendations for AI tools worth paying for in 2025. They also discuss which AI tools aren't worth paying for in 2025. One of them might surprise you!

Next, Mark and Steve begin their review of OpenAI's "12 Days of OpenAI" announcements, beginning with the release of their enhanced O1 reasoning model. This new model will help you plan your family history research.

This week's Tip of the Week challenges conventional thinking about AI hallucinations, suggesting ways to leverage this characteristic as a feature rather than a bug.

In RapidFire, Mark and Steve examine Microsoft's Copilot Vision beta release, Apple's cautious AI rollout strategy, Google's new memory feature in Gemini, and XAI's significant funding round.

In The News:

03:10 AI Tools Worth Paying For in 2025

19:48 Specialty AI Tools to Consider in 2025

26:46 AI Tools Not Worth Paying For in 2025

32:26 OpenAI's 12 Days of Gifts Begins

Tip of the Week:

40:10 Treat AI Hallucinations as a Feature, not a Bug

RapidFire:

50:06 Microsoft Copilot Vision Beta Launch

53:18 Apple's Intelligence Rollout Plans

56:20 Google Gemini Adds Memory Feature

59:34 XAI's $6 Billion Funding Round

ChatGPT Plus

https://openai.com/index/chatgpt-plus/

ChatGPT Advanced Voice Mode

https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8400625-voice-mode-faq

Claude Pro

https://claude.ai/

Perplexity Pro

https://www.perplexity.ai/pro

Acrobat AI Assistant

https://helpx.adobe.com/ca/acrobat/using/generative-ai.html

Eleven Labs

https://elevenlabs.io/

Mid Journey

https://www.midjourney.com/

Microsoft Copilot Pro

https://www.microsoft.com/microsoft-365/copilot

Grammarly

https://www.grammarly.com/

ChatGPT O1 Model

https://openai.com/o1/

ChatGPT O1 Pro

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

Microsoft Copilot Vision

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-copilot/blog/2024/12/05/copilot-vision-now-in-preview-a-new-way-to-browse/

Apple Intelligence

https://www.apple.com/ca/apple-intelligence/

Siri

https://www.apple.com/siri/

Gemini Memory Feature

https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/19/googles-gemini-chatbot-now-has-memory/

X AI Platform

https://x.ai/

Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Genealogy, Family History, Machine Learning, AI Tools, AI Product Reviews, AI Pricing, Voice Technology, Image Generation, Research Tools, AI Ethics, Content Creation, Professional Research, Language Models