Artifacts: make things you can use
Goal. Turn a request into a real, editable thing — a document, a diagram, or a small live tool — that opens in its own panel beside the chat and that you can refine by talking to it.
Create a flowchart of a standard RNA-seq differential-expression pipeline, from raw reads through QC, alignment, quantification, normalization, to the final DE table. Make it an artifact I can edit, and keep the boxes short.
When Claude builds something substantial — a diagram, a document, a chart, a snippet of working code — it opens an Artifact in a side panel. You then edit it by replying ("add a 'batch correction' step before normalization") instead of regenerating from scratch.
- 1Ask for something buildable. A flowchart, a one-page protocol, a comparison table, an SVG figure, or a small interactive calculator — Claude can render documents, diagrams, charts, and live code as Artifacts.
- 2Watch the side panel. The Artifact opens beside the conversation and updates live as you refine it — Claude can even run small bits of code right there in the browser.
- 3Refine by conversation. "Make the boxes blue", "add a QC failure branch", "turn this into a checklist" — each reply edits the same Artifact. Then use the panel's buttons to copy, download, or share it.
You'll see. A working flowchart (or document, chart, or mini-tool) rendered live in its own panel — reshaped by your replies and ready to copy, download, or share.
Cost. Artifacts are available on all plans, including free; to run code or generate downloadable files you may need to turn on "Code execution and file creation" in Settings. Heavy generating eats the free daily limit faster. Note: Claude does not generate photographic images — it makes diagrams, SVGs, and code, not AI photos.
Takeaway. When you need a usable thing and not just text, ask for an Artifact — a live document, diagram, or tool in a side panel that you shape by talking to it.