For our friend’s 25th birthday our group was eager to do something unique. Rather than gifting clothes, a book or another predictable present, we wanted to assemble something that could incorporate our cherished memories, laughter and friendship over the years. That’s when someone half jokingly suggested: “Why don’t we ask ChatGPT for ideas? People are using it for everything nowadays”.
Utilizing ChatGPT turned out to be an exceptional idea. Not only did it recommend a rich list of gift options but most importantly it assisted us in forming a plan. Despite our limited knowledge in prompt engineering, after explaining that we wished for something creative and personal, it suggested creating a digital scrapbook which would consist of photos, stories and messages from all of us. It even helped us define the various sections to include with the appropriate titles: “The Beginning of Our Friendship,” “Unforgettable Trips,” “Inside Jokes,” and “Birthday Wishes.
Having a solid baseline we decided that the next step was to use Canva’s AI tools to design the pages. In a similar manner, we provided text based prompts and generated custom layouts and backgrounds with soft pastel colors, travel icons and polaroid style frames that matched our friend’s personality. With the guidance of chatGPT we wrote heartfelt captions, organized our messages and even generated a short poem to end the scrapbook with.
Unexpectedly, this chaotic group project was completed surprisingly smoothly. AI helped us stay on track, think out of the box and turn our scattered photos and memories into something cohesive and meaningful.
Our friend was touched and so were we. What started as a quick idea powered by AI became a meaningful collaboration powered by friendship. It reminded us that technology isn’t just about efficiency but that it can also help us express emotion, preserve memories and bring people closer together.
I liked a lot the idea! i think it is a great example of how AI can be used to create stronger human connections. We are in a world using AI to boost productivity wherever is possible and i really liked the idea it not just efficientate but also can help on a human level. Personally I tried to find a gift in this way too, but it needed much more time to do so! i would appreciate the creation (or maybe it already exists and i don’t know it) of a tool specifically for that: helping people to find or create the right present!