This blog post explains a common interaction with AI assistants: why they often cannot open or browse a specific URL and how you — as a researcher, journalist, or curious reader — can get a clear summary by pasting the text directly.
Drawing on three decades of experience in scientific communication, I’ll outline why the limitation exists, practical steps to prepare and paste content, and tips to obtain an accurate and useful summary in a concise form such as “10 clear and concise sentences.”
Why an AI assistant asks you to paste text instead of fetching a URL
When an AI replies, “I can’t access the content of that specific URL directly, but if you paste the text from the page here, I can summarize it into 10 clear and concise sentences for you,” it is doing so for technical and privacy reasons.
These models typically do not have live web-browsing capability by default, and even when browsing features exist they are sandboxed to protect user data and avoid retrieving copyrighted or private material without consent.
Understanding this limitation helps users avoid frustration and speeds up workflows.
Rather than insisting the assistant retrieve a page, provide the relevant text and get the summary immediately.
Practical implications for researchers and content creators
Knowing how to share the right content prepares you for fast, accurate summaries and analyses.
Below are straightforward steps you can follow to ensure your pasted text yields the best possible output.
How to format and paste text for the best AI summary
The quality of a summary depends heavily on the input.
If you want a compact and accurate synthesis, prepare the text carefully and give the assistant a targeted instruction.
This yields better results than an ambiguous request like “summarize this page.”
Step-by-step formatting tips: Use plain text, avoid excessive markup, and if the article contains tables, convert key rows into simple text lines.
If the content is longer than allowed by the platform’s character limits, split it into logical sections and paste them sequentially.
Examples of effective prompts
Below are sample prompts you can use after pasting the content.
These are tuned to produce concise, useful outputs:
Final recommendations and best practices
As a science communicator with thirty years in the field, my practical advice is to be precise about what you need. Sanitize any sensitive content before sharing.
Treat the AI like a skilled research assistant that depends on well-prepared source material.
Paste the relevant text and give a clear instruction, such as “10 sentences.” Expect a rapid, focused synthesis.
This approach respects privacy constraints while leveraging the AI’s summarization strengths to accelerate your work.
Here is the source article for this story: Wisconsin Extreme Weather Flooding