Here's how ChatGPT became my favorite travel companion ...
It’s 2025, and I have some news for you: after initially resisting, I’ve given up and started using ChatGPT all the time. I have used it more than ever since I moved to good old Italy. You might get concerned that a tech journalist like myself has never endured with the LLM party for too long. But, honestly, I didn’t see a reason to request stuff from a personal AI, and I still think a lot of these AI apps might eventually go away, such as Twitter’s NFTs. In the past year, it seems all my tech stuff got some AI. Apple Intelligence powers my messages, AI curates my music, and even when I Google something, the first results are also AI-generated. So, after a long time, and especially after getting sick of Apple Intelligence, I decided to give ChatGPT a try.
Trying ChatGPT in Rome
Over the years, I’ve seen everyone in the newsroom finding a good reason to use ChatGPT. BGR‘s Chris Smith, for example, ran plenty of marathons thanks to AI help. While I don’t plan to run a marathon with AI, I decided to give it a shot while visiting Rome for the first time. ChatGPT is reportedly testing image watermarks, but only on free accounts. I asked ChatGPT to create an itinerary for me as a first-timer traveler while also adding meal suggestions from my friends. Of course, not everything went perfectly, and I had to ask the LLM model to adjust my itinerary a few times. However, the best part was that I didn’t have to make it.
Exploring Italy with ChatGPT
I know that many of you love planning trips. However, I’m more of a guy who likes adventures unfolding in front of me, so I hate the scheduling part, buying things in anticipation, and so on. ChatGPT helped me make this travel to Rome more fun, getting to know the most important places without much fuss to Google everything. Jony Ive is building a futuristic AI device and OpenAI may acquire it. Then, I started getting confident about speaking Italian. While I’ve been taking classes for two and a half years, there are some situations that I have never seen myself in. I often asked ChatGPT how to have a conversation about buying a SIM card, getting fever medicines, buying socks, and even asking a question in class. The LLM always gave me great, full responses and possibly scenarios of how the conversation would develop.
Embracing AI Technology
With correct answers and a basic knowledge of myself, I started asking ChatGPT questions about the historical places I was visiting, what I should be paying attention to, pictures, statues, and even if the outfit I chose to go out was good enough. Superb. OpenAI’s Sam Altman just announced release timing for GPT-5. The only downside of ChatGPT was when it suggested it could tweak my photo brightness. It gave me a brand new face, switched my watch, and changed the entire background. That was a lot of AI of the LLM. Besides that, OpenAI’s GPT has become my go-to companion for everyday tasks and traveling around.
The Future of AI Companions
After reporting that OpenAI plans to buy Sam Altman’s and Jony Ive’s startup, which is apparently developing a (not) AI phone, I think I truly understand what an AI companion could be like. How to get ChatGPT Plus for free if you’re a student To be honest, I almost see the potential of what Humane’s AI Pin could have been: An AI companion who sees the world with me, gives me tidbits, and I can rely on useful information instead of having to Google around. By using ChatGPT all the time, I’m really on the verge of paying for a Plus subscription, as it will give me faster, more reliable data with newer models. However, I want more. I want to take advantage of the Operator to plan specific stuff for me and buy things for me without looking at them. Perhaps I could even get an Uber ride, a DoorDash delivery, and so on as this technology develops. It’s 2025, and I’m finally excited about AI. Who would have thought?
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