Story
When I open an AI tool for the first time, I want to see in a few seconds what it can and cannot do for me, so I ask for things that work and go elsewhere for things that don't.
Rahul, a first-year accounting student in Pune, opening his university's study helper on his phone.
- 01 Setting
Rahul opens the new study helper for his ACC101 course.
- 02 Trigger
He is not sure what it is for - homework, marks, or both.
- 03 Without it
"Ask me anything!" So he asks for his mid-term mark and gets "Sorry, I can't help with that."
- 04 With it
A short card says it explains and quizzes from the course notes. Marks are in the Student Portal.
- 05 Outcome
He asks for an example of depreciation and gets 1 from chapter 4.
Live demo
This demo follows a script, so it plays the same every time - there is no real AI behind it. Change a setting to see the same moment play out differently.
What happens, step by step
| State | The person sees | The AI is | When | Screen reader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A greeting and a short card: 1 line on what it is, what it can do, what it can't. | Idle. | before the first ask | - |
| 2 | Each limit says where to go instead. 1 example ask sits under the card. | Idle. | about 10 s | - |
| 3 | An ask that fits what the card said. The placeholder names the scope. | Idle. | - | - |
| 4 | For a thing the AI can't do, the link in the card takes him to the right place. | Idle. | on tap | - |
| 5 | The answer streams in (it arrives word by word). | Writes. | - | “Generating a response” |
| 6 | On a phone the card folds to 1 line, "What I can and can't do", still 1 tap away. | Idle. | after the first ask | “Response complete” |
On each device
- phone
- The card is short - 1 intro line, 3 cans, 2 can'ts. After the first ask it folds to 1 line above the chat.
- tablet
- As on desktop.
- desktop
- The card sits in the empty chat, above the box. It stays at the top of the thread. Help links to the full list.
When to use it
- The AI is new to people, or new in this product.
- The AI has clear limits people would not guess - no web, no account data, no graded work.
- A wrong first ask costs trust, because "Sorry, I can't" feels like the tool is broken.
- People already know the tool well - a short line and example asks are enough. Use Suggested prompts instead.
- The limit only matters for 1 action - say it at that action. Use Error, refusal and limits instead.
- You need to learn about the person before you can say what is useful to them. Use Smart onboarding instead.
The parts of the pattern
- A1-line introWhat it is and what it works from, in under 10 seconds of reading.
- BCan3 things it does well, written as tasks people have.
- CCan'tThe limits people would hit first, each with where to go instead.
- DWhat it readsThe data it uses: "I only read the ACC101 notes, not the web."
- ETry this1 example ask that is sure to work well.
Do and Avoid
I help you study ACC101, using your course notes.
✓ Explain a topic · ✓ Quiz you
✕ See your marks - use Student Portal
Hi! I’m your AI genius. Ask me anything!
Ask me anything
I can
✓ Explain a topic in plain words
✓ Quiz you on a chapter
✓ Check your working
3 tasks, in people’s words
Features
RAG over 14 sources · GPT-class model · 128k context · Function calling · Multilingual
Tech words, no tasks
Writing and accessibility
- Start with 1 line: what it is and what it works from. "I help you study ACC101, using your course notes."
- List 3 cans and 2 can'ts at most. Write them as tasks, not features.
- Give every can't a next step: "use the Student Portal", "ask your tutor".
- Don't promise magic. Avoid "anything", "genius" and "always".
- Give the card a heading ("What I can and can't do") so screen reader users can jump to it.
- Use real lists for can and can't. Don't rely on the tick and cross icons alone - the words say it.
- Links to other places say where they go: "Student Portal", not "here".
- The folded line is a button that tells screen readers whether the card is open (with aria-expanded). So the card can be opened again from the keyboard.
Seen in real products
- Copilot in WordWord · Apr 2024An onboarding carousel says Copilot can help you start from scratch or from existing files, summarise, and draft, then says "Copilot can make mistakes".Microsoft HAX Toolkit example (screenshot from Apr 2024) ↗
- Copilot in PowerPointPowerPoint · Apr 2024A "discover Copilot" panel lists 3 tasks - create from Word docs, draft and refine, summarise slides - and a second panel asks people to verify results.Microsoft HAX Toolkit example (screenshot from Apr 2024) ↗
Each example comes from the product’s help pages, release notes or teardowns, with the month it was checked. Products change every month - tell us when 1 is out of date.
Check yourself
Seen this pattern done better, or a product that changed? Press Suggest next to any heading, or tell us about the whole page.