Ask any chatbot what F-value your low-acid canned product needs. You will get F₀ = 3 min. Literature-based, generally correct. As a process specification, meaningless — an F-value belongs to a specific product, container, cold spot, and validated heat-penetration study. A food process engineer's view on where AI earns its keep in food safety, where it must never make the final call, and where it will deliver the biggest gains next.