Claude Projects, or simply Projects, is a Claude feature designed to interact with this AI in separate spaces. This allows you to train it with your own data and documents and generate an independent chat history.
Claude is gaining popularity with the general public and is already a serious competitor , going head-to-head with ChatGPT and Gemini , currently the most popular AI assistants. One reason for this is that with each new update, Anthropic adds significant new features to its chatbot. OpenAI and Google are keeping a close eye on them. One example is Claude Projects , or simply, Claude’s projects.
This same function is shared by the main generative AI assistants. For OpenAI , they are projects— ChatGPT Projects. For Google, they are Gems or Gemini Gems . And for Anthropic, they are also projects— Claude Projects . The goal is the same. In their own words, “to create independent workspaces with their own chat histories and knowledge bases. Within each project, you can upload documents, provide context, and have focused chats.”
AI assistants like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude have been trained using millions of data points, documents, and files provided by their creators. Through use , you train them yourself to learn how you want things done: what style of responses you prefer, which information sources are most reliable, and so on. These projects aim to make this training process accessible to everyone. Furthermore, they allow you to compartmentalize the AI into different areas depending on the topic you’re dealing with. Let’s see what Claude Projects is for , how you can use it in your daily life, and exactly how it works.
What is Claude Projects?
Claude’s projects are a feature you’ll find in Claude’s dropdown menu, or by going directly to Projects . They allow you to compartmentalize your conversations with this artificial intelligence. This can be very useful for preventing Claude from going off on tangents and for allowing it to specialize in a particular topic or area of knowledge. In other words, you can shape Claude with the data you provide, creating your own expert AI to consult frequently, unlike regular conversations, which tend to be more specific and sporadic .
When you interact with Claude , the AI accumulates chat histories. And, if you have Claude’s memory enabled (which you’ll find in Settings , under Capabilities > Memory ), as you talk to the AI, it incorporates those conversations into its knowledge base. This helps Claude learn from you over time and behave more in accordance with your needs.
So, if Claude already learns with every conversation, why use Claude Projects? Claude Projects differ in that they compartmentalize the knowledge base Claude acquires. They have their own separate memory. This means that from the moment you create a new project, you can feed the AI with documents, text, code, or files that you deem appropriate to obtain the answers you need from the intelligent assistant. This is what Anthropic calls context. That’s one aspect. On the other hand, you can ask Claude to behave differently than it does during a normal conversation. For example, with a more serious, formal, or academic tone. Or vice versa. Projects can be used for many things.
Regarding project limitations, in theory you can upload any number of files. However, the maximum size per file is 30 MB . And the content extracted by Claude must fit within Claude’s context window—approximately 200,000 tokens or 500 pages.
Create your first project with Claude
If you’re using Claude, you’ll need to go to Projects . You’ll find this section in the wizard’s drop-down menu. Or, access it directly via its link . Once there:
- Click on New Project .
- Give your project a name and a brief description.
- It’s to differentiate it from other projects. Claude won’t care.
- Now you can customize Claude to your liking.
- First, drop files to train Claude.
- You can also paste text fragments.
- Or use files hosted on GitHub or Google Drive .
- Currently, it does not support links .
- In Instructions , customize Claude’s behavior.
- It’s about telling her what role to adopt, style, responses, etc.
- You can change it whenever you want.
- In the Memory section, you don’t need to touch anything. They will appear when you talk to Claude.
For now, this will suffice. Keep in mind that you can add more documents and files to the project to expand its knowledge base. However, be careful. As we saw, Claude has his limits. Also, when you ask him questions, the more information he needs to consult, the longer it will take him to respond .
How to use a Claude Project
Once you’ve finished setting up a project, go back into it to see the chat activated. Claude Projects works similarly to a conversation with Claude. You simply ask questions and get answers. The difference is that, instead of using its knowledge base or searching the internet , it will consult the documents and files you’ve previously provided. And you’ll see the entire process. Furthermore, you can resume that conversation whenever you want, or start a new one. Otherwise, it’s similar: you can type your questions or talk to Claude, change the style during the conversation, upload files from the text box, and more.
To get the most out of a Claude project, you can do several useful things. For example, you can move individual chats into the project . This will be very useful if, for instance, you had a conversation with Claude and you think the information you gained could be used for the project. To do this, click the button to the right of the chat in the drop-down sidebar and choose the ” Add to project” option. You can also choose the “Remove from project” option if you think that conversation doesn’t add anything. Or you can choose “Change project” if you think it would be more valuable in a different project.
You’ll also find it useful to share Claude’s projects . With the free account, you can only share chats or conversations. To share entire projects, you’ll need a paid account from the Team or Enterprise plan . To share a chat, enter the conversation, tap the Share button , and then Create shareable link . As Claude points out, “only messages up to this point will be shared.” Anything you ask afterward will not be included in the shared link.
Finally, you can highlight your most frequently used projects so they appear in the sidebar. This way, you’ll see them instantly. Just go to Projects , click the project’s dropdown menu, and select Highlight . When you want to remove it, repeat the process and choose Uncheck .
