ChatGPT Is Making Waves Once Again Over An AI-Curated Meal Plan

ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence chatbot, has been wowing internet users with its superhuman abilities since launching in 2022. If you provide ChatGPT with a prompt, such as "Write a story about two people who go on a first date and fall in love," the chatbot can come back within seconds with a story that may look as if it were written by a professional. Questions have even arisen about whether ChatGPT is smart enough to provide mental health therapy or practice as a doctor. 

While writers, English teachers, and medical professionals are just some of the people who might be amazed (and terrified) by AI's abilities, others argue that AI will never replace humans' ability to understand empathy. 

Either way, ChatGPT seems to have broken the internet once again after Brex design manager Ammaar Reshi shared a tweet that went viral illustrating how he used ChatGPT to assist him with grocery shopping. The tweet brought in 1.3 million views after he posted it on April 11, and it's been retweeted more than 420 times. Reshi wrote, "I asked ChatGPT to buy my groceries today using @Instacart's plug-in and it worked so well! Stayed within my budget; Provided ingredients and recipes for 7 meals (including some favorites!); Accounted for my schedule and diet." He then provided screenshots of the instructions he gave ChatGPT and the groceries he was able to get, thanks to the bot's help.  

Instacart is a U.S.-based delivery service that lets users order from participating grocery stores. A personal shopper gets the items, and users can have them delivered or pick up the items at a store. 

In the screenshots Ammaar Reshi shared from his conversation with ChatGPT, he wrote, "Hi! I'd love your help buying groceries. You have a budget of $100. I'd like some good breakfast, lunch, and dinner options. Ideally you can use the budget to create at least 7 meals." Reshi added, "Breakfast: With breakfast I prefer to be quick since I'm normally jumping into meetings. Lunch: I tend to order out for lunch so do what you will with that information. Dinner: I like to cook for dinner so feel free to come up with your own list for that. I tend to cook Pakistani, Chinese, or Italian cuisine. Please recommend recipes (with links) and get all the appropriate ingredients." He also shared dietary instructions that included no alcohol, pork, or dairy. 

I asked ChatGPT to buy my groceries today using @Instacart’s plug-in and it worked so well!

- Stayed within my budget
- Provided ingredients and recipes for 7 meals (including some favorites!)
- Accounted for my schedule and diet

Here’s the convo and delivered groceries 🤩 pic.twitter.com/omRylk13LS

— Ammaar Reshi (@ammaar) April 11, 2023

ChatGPT shared options that matched these preferences. The bot suggested breakfast options including avocado toast, oatmeal, and yogurt with berries. Reshi applied the Instacart plugin available with the beta version of ChatGPT. The system provides a link that goes to the Instacart app, where he confirmed the items and paid. 

ChatGPT illustrated its recipe suggestion prowess with lunch and dinner recommendations for Ammaar Reshi, too. For lunch, the bot suggested lentil soup, a chickpea salad sandwich, and grilled chicken salad. It also provided him with a grocery list for Instacart.

The ChatGPT bot even asked Reshi to ensure the items were within his budget. Reshi went on to suggest that the AI bot could be "the decoupling of services like Blue Apron / HelloFresh." He then illustrated that the bot offered additional recipes based on what it knows about his dietary preferences and meal schedule. 

One Twitter user responded to Reshi's tweet by asking whether the bot could do price comparisons to become a so-called "Super-Couponer." Another Twitter user shared, "I did try to write a complete vegan cookbook, and ChatGPT does wonders! Most of the recipes are healthy and delicious."