AI Glossary
What is Knowledge Cut-off?
The date up to which an AI model's training data goes. The model does not know about events, rule changes or new products after that date unless it can search the web or you give it the information.
A language model learns from data collected up to a certain point. After training, the world keeps changing: new laws, new tax rates, new software versions, new prices. The model does not automatically know about them.
Why it matters:
- An answer about a rule or rate may describe an older version.
- Questions about recent events may get outdated or invented answers.
- Software steps may describe menus that have since changed.
What to do:
- For anything time-sensitive, use a tool with web search turned on, and check its sources.
- Paste the current document, circular or price list and ask questions about that.
- For tax, legal and financial rules, always confirm on the official website or with a professional.
Related: Hallucination.