Generative AI 101: Tokens, Pre-training, Fine-tuning, Reasoning — With SemiAnalysis CEO Dylan Patel

Alex Kantrowitz April 23, 2025
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Alex Kantrowitz

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I host Big Technology Podcast and publish videos from the show and YouTube exclusives here on this channel. Please like and subscribe!

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Dylan Patel is the founder and CEO of SemiAnalysis. He joins Big Technology Podcast to explain how generative AI work, explaining the inner workings of tokens, pre-training, fine-tuning, open source, and reasoning. We also cover DeepSeek’s efficiency breakthrough, the race to build colossal AI data centers, and what GPT-5’s hybrid training approach could unlock. Hit play for a masterclass you’ll want to send to every friend puzzled (or excited) about the future of AI. Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction to Generative AI with Dylan Patel 02:00 - Basics of AI Model Training 04:30 - Understanding Tokens and Word Representation 07:00 - How Models Process Language Patterns 10:00 - Attention Mechanisms and Context Understanding 13:00 - Pre-Training: Learning from Internet Data 16:00 - Loss Minimization and Learning Processes 19:00 - Why GPUs Are Perfect for AI Computation 22:00 - Post-Training and Model Personalities 25:00 - Reasoning: How Modern AI Models Think 28:00 - The Growing Efficiency of AI Models 31:00 - Data Center Build-Outs Despite Increasing Efficiency 34:00 - The Future of GPT-5 and AI Development

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