AI glossary / How it works

Synthetic data

How it works

Artificially generated data used for training when real data is scarce, expensive or private.

More words in How it works

• Test-time computeLetting a model think for longer on a hard question to get a better answer, at the cost of speed and money.
• TokenThe small chunks of text an AI reads and writes in, roughly three-quarters of a word each. Limits and prices are usually counted in tokens.
• TokenizationChopping text into tokens before a model reads it.
• TrainingThe learning stage, where a model is shown vast numbers of examples and adjusts itself until it gets good at the task.
• Training dataThe material a model learned from. The quality of what goes in shapes the quality of what comes out.