Step through at your pace
Play and pause, go back or forward, jump to any step on the scrubber or use the arrow keys. Change the speed whenever you like.
Interactive Explainer
Interactive visual explanations, one step at a time
See how it works, not just what it is.
Ask how something works, from the water cycle to a jet engine to quicksort on your own numbers, and get an explanation you can play, pause and step through, with a narrated caption for every step.
- Every step shows what is happening and why
- Narration that highlights along as it speaks
- Algorithms and formulas computed for real, not guessed
17exact step generators
5sorting algorithms
3physics simulations
3finance calculators
Capabilities
Built to make understanding stick
An explainer is not a video you watch once. It is a scene you can control, pause and question.
Explore
Captions that explain why
Each step says what is happening and why it matters, so the picture and the reasoning arrive together.
Ask about this step
Stuck on one moment? Send that exact step to chat and ask a follow-up question with the context attached.
Trust
Real computation
For sorting, searching, graphs, physics and finance, every frame comes from actually running the algorithm or formula on your inputs.
Checked facts
For processes and mechanisms, the facts behind each step are researched and reviewed before the explainer is built.
Follow the voice
Narration plays alongside the steps and highlights each sentence as it is spoken, so you never lose your place.
Algorithms
Watch algorithms run on your own data
Ask to see a sort on your own numbers, a search for a value, or a shortest path across a small graph. Because each frame comes from running the real algorithm, every comparison, swap and visited node is correct, which makes explainers a dependable way to learn computer science.
- Bubble, insertion, selection, merge and quick sort
- Linear and binary search
- Breadth-first search, depth-first search and Dijkstra
Science & money
Make physics, chemistry and finance visible
Projectile motion, uniform acceleration and the simple pendulum are simulated numerically. Le Chatelier's principle shows which way an equilibrium shifts when conditions change. Simple interest, compound interest and loan repayments are calculated exactly, period by period.
- Projectile, acceleration and pendulum simulations
- Le Chatelier equilibrium shifts
- Simple and compound interest
- Loan amortisation schedules
Everything else
Processes and mechanisms, explained in stages
For topics without a formula, such as how the water cycle works, how a jet engine produces thrust or how ammonia is made, the explainer breaks the subject into labelled parts, flows and stages, pitched at the level you need.
- Labelled parts, flows and stages
- School, undergraduate or expert level
- Sources behind the facts you can open
Where to find it
Create one from chat or from your notebook
Ask for an explanation in chat, or open a notebook's Create panel and choose Interactive Explainer to build one from your own sources, such as a lecture slide deck or a textbook chapter.
- Start from a question in chat
- Or from the sources in an Artifacts Notebook
How it works
From first step to finished work.
- 1
Ask
Describe what you want explained and, if you like, give your own values: a list to sort, a launch angle or a loan amount.
- 2
Build
AI Artifacts plans the stages, runs any exact calculation, checks the facts and assembles the scene.
- 3
Play
Step through, listen to the narration, change the speed or jump straight to any step.
- 4
Go deeper
Ask about a step in chat, or turn the topic into notes and quizzes in a notebook.
Who it is for
Made for the way you work.
Students
See the step you keep getting wrong, slowly, as many times as you need.
Teachers
Walk a class through a process one stage at a time and pause for questions.
Computer science learners
Watch sorting, searching and graph algorithms run on data you choose.
Curious people
Finally understand how the things around you actually work.
Good to know
Use it with confidence.
Exact step-by-step computation covers the algorithms and formulas listed on this page. Other topics are explained from researched and checked facts rather than a simulation, so treat them as an explanation rather than a precise model. Narrated explainers take a little longer to prepare while the audio is generated.
Common questions
What is an interactive explainer?
It is a visual explanation you control. Instead of a fixed video, you get a scene that changes step by step, with a caption explaining what is happening and why, plus play, pause, speed and step controls.
Can it visualise sorting algorithms?
Yes. It can show bubble, insertion, selection, merge and quick sort, as well as linear and binary search and BFS, DFS and Dijkstra on small graphs, using the real algorithm to produce every step.
Can I use my own numbers?
Yes. Give it the list to sort, the values for a physics problem or the amount and rate for a loan, and the steps are calculated from your inputs.
Is the animation accurate?
For algorithms, physics and finance, every step is computed exactly. For other processes, the facts are researched and checked before the explainer is built, but you should still verify anything important.
Can I create an explainer from my notes?
Yes. Add your notes or readings to an Artifacts Notebook and choose Interactive Explainer in the Create panel.
Keep exploring
Works well with
Try Interactive Explainer today.
Create an account, explore the workspace and add credits only when you need advanced or compute-heavy work.