Weekly AI Highlights: January 3 - 9, 2026
What Small Business Owners Need to Know Right Now
Reader, this was one of those weeks that the news was so bad out in the world, I welcomed the distraction of AI news. OpenAI just launched ChatGPT Health, designed to help you prepare for doctor visits, understand symptoms, and navigate health info with better context and guardrails. Gmail’s new AI-powered inbox promises smarter prioritization so you don’t miss what matters, and Amazon’s Alexa Plus website hints at a more capable, cross-device assistant experience beyond just voice commands.
1. OpenAI Launches ChatGPT Health as Millions Ask Medical Questions Weekly
OpenAI just rolled out a health feature for ChatGPT. You can now link your medical records and health apps to get personalized insights about your wellness.
Your health chats stay separate from everything else, with extra encryption to keep things private.
They worked with hundreds of doctors to build it—but it's not meant to replace your actual doctor. It's just there to help you make sense of your own health info.
Sources Link: https://openai.com/index/introducing-chatgpt-health/
MY TAKE
I’m sure this was initiated from a place of “CYA” , but ultimately it’s a good thing. So many people (approx 200 million!) are already using it for health guidance, interpretation, and even diagnosis that it’s a good idea to start putting in some guardrails. Do you use AI for health-related stuff?
ACTION STEP (DO THIS WEEK)
The next time you have a health-related question, use ChatGPT Health to organize your thoughts before an appointment. Try asking it to help you list questions, summarize symptoms, or clarify medical terms.
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2. Gmail Introduces a Personalized AI Inbox and Expanded AI Overviews
Google is rolling out a more personalized AI-powered inbox in Gmail that helps prioritize, summarize, and surface the emails that matter most to you. Alongside this, AI Overviews are expanding across Search, offering quicker summaries and context directly in results. Basically, AI overviews turn information into answers without the digging. When you open an email with dozens of replies, Gmail synthesizes the entire conversation into a concise summary of key points.
Source Link: https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/08/gmail-debuts-a-personalized-ai-inbox-ai-overviews-in-search-and-more/
MY TAKE
I’m personally loving this new feature. Email overload is not going away, so this is Google leaning into triage instead of inbox zero. It’s interesting how this reinforces how AI is becoming the first layer of interaction with information.
ACTION STEP (DO THIS WEEK)
Even when these updates are right in front of your face, since you're inside of your gmail for much of the day, it’s easy to ignore the new stuff. Watch this one minute overview of the latest updates in gmail to give you an idea of what the handy new capabilities are, and the use cases, and try them out!
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3. Alexa Plus Website Goes Live, Signaling a Bigger Push Beyond Smart Speakers
Amazon has launched the Alexa Plus website - Alexa.com, to show off its upgraded AI assistant experience. Alexa Plus is more conversational, and can handle complex requests, follow context, and work across devices.
Source Link: https://www.theverge.com/tech/853535/alexa-plus-website-now-available
MY TAKE
This feels like Amazon resetting expectations for Alexa. Voice assistants stalled for a while. Finally, they are back, and better than ever. In fact, I just recently plugged my Alexa back in…I haven’t used it for the last year or so.
ACTION STEP (DO THIS WEEK)
Visit the Alexa Plus site and pick one task you currently do manually that involves multiple steps, like reminders, scheduling, or household logistics. See if you can offload that to Alexa.
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New Podcast: The One Document That Makes AI Actually Understand Your Business
If you have been using AI and feeling like the output is generic or off, this episode will change how you use it. The issue is usually not the tool. It is the lack of context. In this episode, I share how to create a Core Prompt, a single document that helps AI understand your business, your audience, and your voice. A Core Prompt gives AI a clear source of truth so you are not starting from scratch every time. The result is better output, less editing, and responses that actually sound like you. In this episode, I cover:
- Why AI sounds generic without proper context
- How one document can dramatically improve your AI results
- How to use a Core Prompt as an onboarding guide for AI tools
- Where to store and reuse it across platforms
I also walk through how to create your Core Prompt in a practical way and how I use it inside tools like Claude and NotebookLM (and everywhere!) to keep everything consistent and on brand. This is a foundational episode that makes everything you do with AI easier and more effective.
Front Row AI Club Exclusive Training
Practical Tips for Using AI and Protecting Your IP
with Elise Steegstra
January 21, 2026 at 3 PM ET | 12 PM PT | 8 PM UK
A practical, real-world discussion on how AI affects your intellectual property rights and what you can do to protect and own your own ideas.
What We Will Cover in the Session:
- Practical case studies including marketing copy, video scripts, social media graphics
- How to convert AI-assisted outputs into work you can own.
- How to avoid common pitfalls that cause creators to lose rights inadvertently.
- Tools and checklists to adopt immediately.
This is an exclusive training session for the members of The Front Row AI Club, designed to give members the clarity and confidence needed to make sure they don’t accidentally step on AI “legal landmines”! If you want access to sessions like this, ongoing AI support, and hands-on training, consider joining the Front Row AI Club.
PROMPT OF THE WEEK
Help Me Face the Decision
A clarity-first decision audit
Try this prompt:
Here’s the full context of my situation or project: [paste details]
Identify the specific decision I’m avoiding or overthinking (state it in one clear sentence).
Explain why I’m hesitating (fear, trade-offs, ego, sunk cost, uncertainty, or lack of conviction).
Point out where I’m mistaking activity for progress or delaying under the guise of “more thinking.”
Reframe the decision in its simplest, irreducible form.
Tell me what a decisive person would do in the next 7 days.
Be direct, honest, and practical. No motivational fluff. Assume I want truth, not comfort.
Source: Superhuman.ai
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Something I’m Pondering…
I can’t decide if this is really motivating, or really depressing. Enter your birthdate and see for yourself. Then hit reply on this email and let me know what you think.
The Bottom Line
AI isn't launching splashy new features this week—it's embedding itself into the boring stuff. Health. Email. Voice assistants. The tools you already use daily. That's when adoption gets real. Watch where AI starts making decisions on your behalf. That's the line worth noticing.
KEEP YOUR EYE ON:
- AI becoming the first point of contact for sensitive, high-stakes questions like health
- Inbox and search experiences where AI decides what you see first, subtly changing attention, priorities, and response time
- Voice assistants re-emerging as serious tools, especially if they can follow context and handle more than one-step commands
Comments
If any of these updates sparked questions about how AI might fit into your day-to-day work or personal workflows, hit reply and share what you’re thinking. I read every message, and your questions directly shape what I explore and teach next.
Cheering you on from the front row,
Founder, Front Row AI Club
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You can find my previous newsletter articles here: The Front Row AI Report
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