9 surprising things I managed to accomplish with ChatGPT (and a few you should definitely attempt)

      ChatGPT has become well-known for writing emails, essays, and code, but its capabilities extend far beyond these functions.

      With recent updates, ChatGPT can now interpret images, browse the internet, utilize specialized tools, and function as an “AI agent” that performs tasks on your behalf.

      These features introduce a plethora of powerful tools designed to assist you in managing daily life. After trying out ChatGPT in my routine, I've discovered many surprising and incredibly useful features. Here are some intriguing ones, including a few that you'll definitely want to explore.

      1. Calorie Counting

      If you're tracking calories to maintain your fitness objectives, numerous excellent apps can assist in logging your food intake. However, these meticulously organized plans often collapse when dining out. Whether at Christmas festivities or birthday parties, life's temptations tend to include enticing options like chicken tenders and indulgent BBQ sauce.

      Apps such as Nutracheck and MyFitnessPal excel at tracking known food items, but if you find yourself at a restaurant with items not in their database, estimating meal totals becomes a guessing game.

      This is where ChatGPT comes in. Simply take a picture of your dish (preferably with a standard item like a bank card or coin beside it), type the dish's name as per the menu, and request it to estimate calories and macronutrients like protein, fats, and carbohydrates. The added item helps the model gauge portion sizes more accurately, yielding surprisingly detailed results.

      After snapping a photo of a cheeseboard and tapas, ChatGPT provided a detailed breakdown, allowing me to update my app with a much clearer understanding of my intake.

      While it won't be precisely accurate, calorie counting is fundamentally about producing estimates to help you stay on track.

      2. Change Visualizer

      Have you ever wished to visualize a room transformation before dedicating to new paint or furniture? I certainly did. So, I captured a photo of my living room and asked ChatGPT to show me how it would look with animal print wallpaper. It delivered exactly that—a striking representation of my living room adorned in zebra print.

      Was it an exact representation? No. Some furniture details were somewhat off, to begin with. However, it's significantly better than anything I could create unaided, making it an excellent tool for quick visualizations.

      I've since applied this approach to my garden, asking ChatGPT to add planters with fairy lights and even a home office shed, which it executed remarkably well and quickly.

      3. Unique Cards

      ChatGPT also compensates for my lack of artistic flair in various ways. Recently, I created a custom birthday card for my son using its image generation capabilities.

      I uploaded a photo of my son and requested a design for his birthday card depicting him wrestling a velociraptor in a ring. In under a minute, I received precisely what I envisioned, and it was a significant hit.

      Whether it’s your friend on a unicorn, your pet donning a crown, or your entire family on a wrestling poster, the potential for personalized AI-generated cards is limitless—much more heartfelt (and humorous) than anything store-bought.

      Of course, you must be comfortable uploading photos of people, which could be a concern for those who prioritize privacy. Still, you could describe individuals without sharing their images, refining your prompts for accurate outcomes.

      4. Cooking Inspiration

      I can’t be the only one who opens the fridge and stares at a mix of random ingredients, hoping to magically concoct a meal from what's available.

      Now, I can inform ChatGPT about the ingredients at hand and request it to recommend various recipes using all or some of them.

      Moreover, unlike numerous online cooking blogs, I avoid scrolling through extensive backstories. Why sift through pages about a long-ago stray dog encounter leading to a family cheesecake recipe when I just want to cook?

      5. Supplement Planning

      Managing daily vitamins and supplements can be surprisingly tricky. I was taking Vitamin D, C, B12, iron, NMN, creatine, and magnesium—each at different times—and suspected I wasn't doing it right. So, I sought ChatGPT's help to create a supplement schedule, leveraging its research capabilities to consult scientific studies.

      After listing my supplements, I received a detailed plan—it outlined which ones to take in the morning versus evening, which needed food, and which shouldn't be combined.

      For example, it suggested taking Vitamin D and omega-3 with breakfast (since fat-soluble vitamins absorb better with food), Vitamin C in the afternoon for an energy boost, and magnesium at night for sleep support.

      It also alerted me that calcium could interfere with iron absorption if consumed simultaneously—something I hadn't thought about before. The result was a handy bullet-point schedule, enhancing my supplement routine. If you manage multiple vitamins or medications, give this a try—but always consult a doctor for serious interactions.

      6. Cooking Coordination

      Preparing a large meal with several dishes can be a logistical nightmare, especially when juggling an oven, stovetop, and possibly an