# He used AI to uncover his family’s history

What People Do With AI

Example creator: Scott Melker

Named tools: Grok Bot, ChatGPT, ChatGPT Deep Research

Original source: https://x.com/scottmelker/status/2115220656740577553

Article: https://whatpeopledowithai.com/examples/family-history/

Published: 2026-11-02T18:36:18.048163+00:00
Content updated: 2026-11-02T22:48:33.744649Z
Original source published: 2026-10-27

Public articles and issues. Use the clean Markdown or plain-text links, or copy the full text for your agent.

Yearbooks, gravestone photographs, birth and naturalization records: those are among the finds [Scott Melker described after researching his family history with Grok Bot and ChatGPT](https://x.com/scottmelker/status/2115220656740577553) on October 27.

An old document can give you somewhere to begin. A town, an approximate date or a question about one ancestor can do the same. Pick the person you’re curious about and follow that thread.

## Give the research somewhere to start

[ChatGPT Deep Research](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/10500283-deep-research-in-chatgpt) can work through public websites and uploaded documents, then bring its findings together in a report with source links. That gives you a trail back to the records behind each connection.

Add what you already have, including alternate spellings, approximate dates and known relatives. Ask a specific question: Where did this person live before moving? What can we find about their arrival? Does this photograph connect to a school or town?

## Start the search

“Research [ancestor’s name], who lived in [place] around [year]. I know [facts] and have attached [document or photo]. Help me answer [question]. Link the records you use, distinguish confirmed connections from possibilities, and suggest the most useful next record to look for.”

## Make something your family will want to open

Once you have a few discoveries, turn them into a short illustrated family history: a simple tree, a timeline, photographs and three interesting stories, with links to the records. Save it as a PDF and share it by email or in the family group chat. Invite relatives to add corrections, memories and photos of their own.

“Turn this research about [family or ancestor] into a short illustrated family history for my relatives. Include a simple family tree, a timeline and three interesting stories, with links to the records behind them. Use [photos I’ve supplied]. Mark uncertain connections and leave out private details about living relatives. Format it so I can save it as a PDF.”

Send it with a question: “Does anyone remember this house?” A record gives you a date. Someone in the family may have the story that goes with it.

## Starter prompt

Research [ancestor’s name], who lived in [place] around [year]. I know [facts] and have attached [document or photo]. Help me answer [question]. Link the records you use, distinguish confirmed connections from possibilities, and suggest the most useful next record to look for.

## Help me try this

A conversational handoff with context, tool alternatives and approval boundaries: https://whatpeopledowithai.com/examples/family-history/handoff.txt

## Original sources and getting-started links

- https://x.com/scottmelker/status/2115220656740577553
- https://help.openai.com/en/articles/10500283-deep-research-in-chatgpt