Brief AI the way you'd brief a person

By Alan Goh · 15 Jul 2026 · 2 min read

Before you press Enter

From keywords to a brief

Keywords give it the topic
The situation gives it the facts
The purpose gives it your intent

Short answer

Search engines taught us to type a few keywords. AI works from meaning, so it gives better answers when you describe the situation and what the result is for, in plain sentences, the way you would brief a person.

Watch someone open AI for the first time and you’ll often see the same thing. They type hotel KL pool and press enter.

It’s a habit almost all of us share. Years of search engines taught us that a few well-chosen words get the best results.

AI works another way. A search engine matches the words you type to pages that contain them. AI reads for meaning and writes an answer from it. Three words give it a topic, and it has to imagine the rest.

One request, three ways

Keywords. Hotel, KL, pool. AI knows the subject. Who is going, for how long, on what budget, and what would make a place right for you are all open.

The situation. A family of four, three nights in KL during the school holidays, mid-range budget, and we’d like a pool. Now it has the facts. It still has to guess what the trip is for.

The purpose. A relaxing family break. The pool is for the kids, we’d like to walk to dinner, and we prefer somewhere quiet. Now it shares your intent, and its suggestions start to look like ones you’d pick yourself.

Each step gives AI more of what you mean. The last one, the why, is the step most people leave out.

You already know how to do this

Briefing a person comes naturally. When you ask a colleague to book the team dinner, you mention that it’s a farewell, that two people avoid beef, and that the guest of honour likes somewhere quiet. You give the whole picture without thinking about it.

AI responds to that same kind of brief. Tell it the situation, what the result is for, and what a good result looks like to you.

Keywords still have their place

For a quick fact, such as a definition, a conversion or a spelling, a few words do the job.

And a brief can be short. Two clear sentences that say what you want and why usually work better than a long paragraph of loosely related detail. The aim is meaning, and every sentence should add some.

The habit

Next time you catch yourself typing keywords into AI, turn them into the sentence you’d say to a capable colleague.

Then add one more sentence: what it’s for.

In your department

Sales & Marketing: Describe the client’s situation and the decision they face when you ask for a proposal, and the draft starts to read as if it was written for them.
HR & Admin: For a job advertisement, describe the team, the work and the kind of person who does well there, as well as the job title.
Operations & Delivery: When planning a site visit or an event, say what it is for and what matters most on the day, so the checklist AI gives you fits the job.