The Curio catalog
Free AI courses in plain English
Short lessons on how AI works and how to use it well, with a tutor in every lesson.
Understand: how AI actually works
- AI FoundationsExplain how modern AI actually works, in plain language.
- Prompt EngineeringGet reliable, useful results out of any model, on purpose.
- AI Agents and Tool UseDesign AI that can plan, use tools, and act, not just answer.
- Retrieval Augmented GenerationGround a model in your own data so its answers are trustworthy.
- AI EvaluationTell whether AI output is actually good, and run it in production.
- AI Model ArchitectureUnderstand what is under the hood and choose the right model.
- AI Safety and ReliabilitySpot where AI fails and deploy it responsibly.
- Applied AI StrategyTurn AI capability into real product and measurable value.
Apply: First wins
- Effective PromptingWrite prompts that get you a useful answer the first time, and fix the ones that miss.
- AI Model SelectionChoose the right model and effort for any task, and know when the fast one wins.
- AI Assistant SetupSet up custom instructions, projects, memory, and tools so AI fits how you actually work.
- Everyday AI FluencyWrite a reusable prompt, pick the right tool, and catch a wrong answer before you trust it.
Apply: Build with AI
- Claude Code Project SetupWrite and maintain a CLAUDE.md that makes a coding agent reliably do the right thing.
- AI Assisted CodingTake a coding task from plan to reviewed, verified change with an AI pair.
- AI Agents at WorkPut an agent to work on a real recurring task, supervised, and know when not to.
- AI Assisted WritingDraft emails, edit your own words, summarize long reads, and handle a hard message with care.
- AI for Knowledge WorkTurn meetings into action, tame a spreadsheet, and prepare for the job you want.
Apply: AI in your life
- AI for Everyday WorkUse AI across writing, research, planning, and decisions in a system that sticks.
- AI Role PlaybooksApply AI to your role, marketing, sales, ops, product, or support, with one concrete playbook.
- Safe AI Use at WorkKnow why AI errs, protect your data, spot prompt injection, and tell when not to use AI at all.
- AI for Everyday LifePlan meals, steady a budget, map a trip, and get calm help with parenting.
- Everyday AI PracticeWrite, plan, decide, and learn with AI every day, and spot its fakes before they cost you.
Apply: The Operator Method
- AI Operator MethodScope the deliverable, brief the model, loop the critique, ground every claim, and ship a prompt system your team can run.
Questions
- What is Curio?
- Curio teaches how AI works in plain English, proves it with demanding exams, and awards verifiable credentials. The mission is to make everyone fluent in AI.
- Is Curio free?
- Learning on Curio is free and needs no account to start. Mastery Credentials are free during launch: pass a track's Mastery Check to earn a verifiable credential, and a credential you earn now stays yours.
- What are the three depths?
- Every idea is explained at three depths: plain English, a business lens, and the technical detail. You can switch depth in a tap, any time.
- What is the Curio Mastery Credential?
- A credential earned by passing a real exam. Silver is a structured Mastery Check graded with per-criterion evidence; Gold is an oral defense with an AI examiner. Both are graded server-side, never self-declared.
- How is a Curio credential verified?
- Every credential has a public verification page and a signed Open Badges 3.0 assertion, so anyone can check that it is real without contacting us.
- What are the Curio guides?
- The guides are where The Curio Team publishes short, sourced posts about AI: a Signal on the one development that matters, a Playbook with a hands-on how-to, and a Deep Read that explains a topic in depth. Every article cites its sources.