AI tools

AI tools have moved from novelty to necessity. They handle research, writing, analysis, and tasks that used to take hours. The question isn't whether to use them, but which ones and for what.

This category changes fast. The tools that lead today might not lead tomorrow. Focus on learning how to use AI effectively rather than committing to one tool forever.

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Use AI for first drafts of any written content - emails, blog posts, ad copy, proposals. You'll edit heavily, but starting from something beats starting from nothing.

Use AI for research and summarisation. Upload a document, get the key points. Ask questions about a topic, get a structured answer faster than searching.

Use AI for data analysis. Describe what you want to understand, paste your data, and get insights without writing formulas.

Use AI as a thinking partner. Explain your problem, get alternative perspectives, pressure-test your assumptions.

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Quality of output varies significantly between models. Test the same prompt across tools to see the difference.

Context window determines how much information you can provide. Larger context means better answers for complex tasks.

Integration with your workflow matters. Can you use it in your browser, in your docs, in your CRM?

Privacy and data handling become important when you're working with customer data or proprietary information.

ChatGPT is the default starting point. Wide capabilities, large context window, and the most third-party integrations.

Claude excels at longer documents, nuanced analysis, and tasks requiring careful reasoning.

Perplexity is best for research with sources. It searches the web and cites where information comes from.

NotebookLM is useful for working with your own documents - upload sources and ask questions about them.

Most teams end up using multiple AI tools for different tasks. That's fine.

AI is a multiplier on your existing skills. Learn prompting basics, experiment with different tools, and build AI into your daily workflow. The productivity gains compound over time.