When you're finished with work and you need something to do, where do you turn your attention? Some folks build models, others do some coloring. Some relax and watch TV. But if you're looking for something to pour your free time and attention into, it can be difficult to settle on one thing, or even multiple. 

Model trains, running clubs, robotics and coding classes all sound fun -- until you realize you'd rather fly, running shoes cost far more than they should, and you're less of a front-end/back-end person and more of a "no end in sight for how boring Java can be" person.

I asked three different AI systems -- Claude AI, Google Gemini and ChatGPT -- about what my spouse's next hobby should be using the exact same prompt, and the results were surprising.

Claude: Getting a clue

Here's the prompt I wrote: "I am a 39-year-old man in the United States of British origin. I live in Los Angeles, California, and am married with a dog and a cat. I live in a house with some backyard space. I enjoy travel, reading, playing video games and am looking to add a new hobby to my list of activities. I also enjoy getting deals, as that's what my career deals with. Can you suggest three hobbies that I should look into for my review? Please give me information on the financial and time commitments needed, as well as what you would consider to be the plusses and minuses of each one. I work a regular 9-5 job so would need to be done around that constraint as well."

Gardening is a hobby many people only come to appreciate in their golden years, but all three AI systems recommended it as an easy way to pass the time with minimal effort and expense.

The second suggestion was reselling and thrifting vintage finds, followed by homebrewing beer, cider or mead. It gave a lot of detail into the time and financial commitments, pros and cons as well as why it assumed those hobbies would suit my husband based on that short prompt.

Claude AI was particularly thoughtful in appealing to the prompter's needs and personality, pointing out that gardening could be a great way to save money -- perhaps recognizing that finding a good deal is a deeply entrenched personality trait of my little cheapskate husband.

Gemini: Combining interests

Gemini suggested hunting for and reselling vintage video games, books and other old media as a pastime that could pair well with traveling on points. It also recommended brewing beer as a way to spend time in a backyard already full of plants (in addition to "high-yield urban orchard gardening").

Gemini was adept at using my spouse's prompt details to guide its suggestions, creating a nicely packaged, holistic approach to how he might spend his off-hours between a demanding 9-to-5 job.

ChatGPT: Making a night of it

Along with backyard gardening (again), ChatGPT was the only AI system to suggest an evening hobby: amateur astronomy. Most of the other systems focused on ways to pass the weekend hours at estate sales or at home.

Stargazing could be a fun way to spend a Friday night, but we live in Los Angeles. Many of the "stars" overhead might actually be satellites, and finding a decent vantage point would likely mean braving traffic and crowds taking selfies over the city skyline.

ChatGPT's other suggestion was using our backyard for beekeeping:

Beekeeping seemed pretty out of left field, considering the original prompt mentioned nothing about an interest in food, insects or anything remotely related to the complex caretaking involved with bees -- or bee law. According to ChatGPT, the time commitment is only two to four hours per month (though local beekeepers might dispute that).

Overall, ChatGPT's recommendations were the least relevant to the prompter's real interests, and the logic the tool used to explain why it had made the recommendations was very thin.

I just can't buy that "many full-time professionals" who enjoy playing video games also do a little beekeeping on the side.

Here's hoping AI can offer some creative ideas for spending your time that don't involve buying a full-body suit.