ChatGPT is a general-purpose AI chatbot that can help generate ideas, refine your research question, and guide the structure of your thinking. It’s best used during the early planning stage, just make sure to check the accuracy and relevance of its responses.

Strengths

• Good for interactive brainstorming and breaking down complex topics into manageable parts
• Offers different perspectives on research questions
• Helps overcome writer’s block and build initial outlines

Weaknesses

• Can give confident but incorrect answers
• Relying on it too much can limit critical thinking and memory retention

Best used for

• Shaping essay structures
• Exploring different angles on a topic
• Clarifying ideas before starting formal research

Try this

• Try asking it to brainstorm research questions for your topic or explain a difficult concept in simple terms

Claude is a conversational assistant that’s great for brainstorming, outlining ideas, and summarising longer documents. It handles extended text well and usually keeps a friendly, easy-to-read tone.
 

Strengths

• Excellent at summarising long documents and explaining complex material
• Keeps track of context in longer discussions
• Often flags uncertainty instead of making unsupported claims
• Strong at structuring complex ideas clearly

Weaknesses

• Free tier has limits that can interrupt longer research sessions
• Sometimes overly cautious in its answers
• Slower than some alternatives and not always accurate

Best used for

• Summarising research papers
• Explaining technical jargon or detailed material
• Supporting academic writing across different subjects

Try this

• Use it to outline a project plan or summarise a long article into key points in a conversational style

Copilot is built into Microsoft 365 tools like Word and PowerPoint. It's useful to help you organise your thinking, shape early outlines, and rework drafts.
 

Strengths

• Helps shape rough ideas into outlines directly in Word or PowerPoint
• Breaks broad topics into manageable chunks
• Supports early drafting in a familiar workspace

Weaknesses

• Needs clear, specific prompts to be useful
• Can sound confident even when it's wrong
• Doesn’t understand academic expectations so check everything carefully
   

Best used for

• Planning structure and sequencing
• Getting unstuck when starting a new topic
• Summarising notes or shaping early ideas

Try this

• Open a Word document and ask Copilot to create a basic structure for your assignment or suggest ways to organise key points from a lecture.

Gemini is Google’s AI assistant that can help build outlines, define key terms, and shape research plans. It works well with Google tools like Docs and Sheets.
 

Strengths

• Can handle text, images, audio, and video thanks to multimodal capabilities
• Deeply integrated with Google Workspace
• A good fit for students already using Google’s tools

Weaknesses

• Most benefits come if you’re already working in the Google ecosystem
• Some advanced features are behind a paywall

Best used for

• Students working in Google Docs and Drive who want AI support built in
• Creating multimedia research presentations
• Collaborating on group projects within Google Workspace

Try this

• Ask Gemini to generate a structured essay outline or create definitions for key terms related to your topic

Grok is an AI chatbot built into X. It’s useful for informal brainstorming and summarising conversations, but it’s less suited to academic work so use with caution.
 

Strengths

• Pulls live data from X, so it’s good for spotting real-time trends and news

Weaknesses

• Informal tone with little academic focus
• No source citations, limited depth, and restricted UK access

Best used for

• Exploring how your research topic appears in public discussions
• Seeing how academic ideas are being talked about in popular media
• Casual brainstorming when you want a less formal starting point

Try this

• Use it for informal discussions or quick idea exploration, like summarising recent news relevant to your subject

Perplexity is a research-focused chatbot that gives concise answers with linked sources. It’s useful for exploring a topic or checking quick facts early in the research process.
 

Strengths

• Includes citations and links with each response
• Built specifically for research questions
• Short, clear answers that don’t overwhelm
• Good for fact-checking and early-stage topic exploration

Weaknesses

• Daily search limits on the free version
• Relies on web sources, so lacks academic depth

Best used for

• Quick fact-checking
• Getting an overview of new topics
• Finding starting points for deeper research
• Verifying information before formal work begins

Try this

• Try asking a precise factual question and see the short answer with cited sources to get a quick overview

Connected Papers visualises connections between academic papers, helping you see how studies relate and understand the shape of a research field.

Strengths

• Creates clear visual maps of research links
• Helps identify key, influential papers
• Shows how research has developed over time

Weaknesses

• Depends on citation data, so it might miss important uncited work
• Less useful for very new research areas
• Visual layout might not suit everyone’s learning style

Best used for

• Tracing how research themes evolve
• Finding connected or influential studies quickly
• Seeing how your topic fits into wider academic discussions

Try this

• Start with a key paper for your assignment and visualise the citation network to find influential related work

Consensus answers research questions by summarising published findings and highlighting where studies agree or where uncertainty remains.

Strengths

• Searches millions of peer-reviewed papers to show key findings based on your questions
• Points out conflicting claims in the literature
• Helps you discover influential papers you might have missed

Weaknesses

• Depends on citation networks, so it can miss relevant but uncited work
• Coverage varies across disciplines
• Can reinforce publication bias by focusing on well-represented findings

Best used for

• Starting literature reviews
• Understanding where research consensus exists
• Spotting gaps in study coverage

Try this

• Ask a research question to see a summary of what published studies agree or disagree on

Elicit searches Semantic Scholar for relevant papers. It summarises findings and presents them in clear tables, making it easier to compare studies and spot key claims.

Strengths

• Systematically searches academic databases
• Organises findings into easy-to-read tables
• Good at pulling key claims from multiple papers

Weaknesses

• Free accounts have daily query limits
• Summaries might miss subtle arguments
• Works best for empirical research, less so for theoretical work

Best used for

• Systematic literature reviews
• Quickly summarising key research findings

Try this

• Enter a research question and review the table of relevant papers summarised by findings and methods.

SciSpace is a research platform designed to help you find, read, and understand academic papers. It also supports literature reviews, citation management, and writing tasks.

Strengths

• Combines search, reading, and writing tools in one place
• Explains complex academic ideas clearly
• Includes built-in citation management

Weaknesses

• Some key features are behind a paywall
• Can feel overwhelming for quick or simple searches
• AI explanations might oversimplify complex theories

Best used for

• Systematic literature reviews
• Reading support with summaries
• Managing citations and organising your writing process

Try this

• Use the platform to highlight and annotate PDFs while organising citations for your literature review

Semantic Scholar is a free academic search engine that finds peer-reviewed research. It’s often used as the foundation for AI tools like Elicit.

Strengths

• Shows citation counts and highlights influential papers
• Includes abstracts and full-text access where available through the library

Weaknesses

• Coverage is stronger in STEM fields than in others
• Search interface is simpler than specialised library databases

Best used for

• Foundational searches for academic research
• Discovering primary literature before turning to AI tools
• A first step before using subject-specific databases

Try this

• Search for peer-reviewed articles on your topic and filter by date or relevance to find the most useful sources

Research Rabbit allows you to upload your existing research papers and then generates a visual network of related papers and authors. It's an excellent tool for identifying key researchers and tracking developments within a specific topic area.

Strengths

• Visualises research networks and citation links
• Helps you build curated collections of related work
• Flags influential or emerging studies you might have missed

Weaknesses

• Coverage varies by discipline
• Can miss very recent publications
• Depends on citation data, so it may overlook uncited but relevant work

Best used for

• Discovering seminal or influential papers
• Mapping the research landscape in a field
• Keeping track of new publications in your area of interest

Try this

• Upload one of your course readings and explore the visual map of related papers and authors

ChatPDF: Upload a PDF (like a journal article), and ChatPDF creates a chat-style interface so you can ask questions about the content. It’s especially useful for unpacking dense or technical texts.

Strengths

• Lets you interact with a PDF by asking questions
• Good for breaking down complex articles into more manageable parts

Weaknesses

• Free version limits uploads and the number of questions
• May struggle with tables or unusual formatting
• Can oversimplify or misinterpret technical content

Best for

• Making sense of difficult journal articles
• Extracting key arguments, methods, or findings

Try this

• Upload a challenging article from one of your modules and ask “What’s the main argument in this paper?” or “Can you summarise the methodology section?”

Copilot is built into Microsoft 365 apps like Word and PowerPoint. It supports outlining, summarising, rephrasing, and editing, making it useful when drafting or reviewing writing. However, it doesn't fully understand academic standards, so you’ll need to rely on your own judgment.

Strengths

• Helps organise and structure your ideas
• Can search and extract key info from large texts
• Explains complex points in more accessible terms
• Works smoothly within Microsoft tools you already use

Weaknesses

• Needs clear, specific prompts to be effective
• May sound confident even when the answer’s wrong

Best for

• Shaping early drafts
• Improving clarity and flow
• Getting guidance through sequenced questions without giving direct answers

Try this

• Ask Copilot to draft an outline for your essay or suggest rephrasing for clearer academic writing

Grammarly is a real-time writing assistant that checks grammar, spelling, clarity, and tone. It’s especially useful for editing final drafts or supporting students writing in a second language. It won’t evaluate your academic content, so critical thinking is still essential.

Strengths

• Offers grammar, punctuation, and style suggestions as you write
• Improves tone, clarity, and consistency
• Supports non-native English speakers and students needing extra writing help
• Works with Word, Google Docs, and browser extensions

Weaknesses

• Free version has fewer features
• Sometimes recommends overly formal or stiff phrasing
• Doesn’t always align with academic norms, use your own judgement
• Focuses on style, not content or argument

Best for

• Polishing final drafts
• Spotting repetitive structures or inconsistent tone
• Supporting writing confidence for EAL and dyslexic students

Try this

• Paste a section of your essay draft into Grammarly to spot grammar mistakes and get suggestions for improving clarity and style. Look through the suggestions and accept the ones that improve clarity without losing your voice.

Immersive Reader is built into Word, OneNote, and other Microsoft apps. It supports reading focus and accessibility by reading text aloud, adjusting formatting, and highlighting grammar features to improve comprehension.

Strengths

• Makes dense text easier to process
• Reduces visual and cognitive load
• Includes read-aloud, translation, and grammar tools

Weaknesses

• Not available in all file formats or platforms

Best for

• Reading support and accessibility
• Multilingual users, dyslexic readers, or those tackling long texts
• Anyone needing a break from screen fatigue

Try this

• Open a long article in Word or OneNote. Activate Immersive Reader, turn on read-aloud, and try features like syllable breaks or part-of-speech highlighting to boost focus.

NotebookLM lets you upload documents and transforms them into FAQs, study guides, or podcasts. Useful for revision and digesting readings in a more interactive way.

Strengths

• Converts documents into FAQs, study guides, and podcasts.
• Great for revision and digesting readings.
• Creates diverse study materials from your uploaded documents

Weaknesses

• Still in development with potential access limitations; 
• AI-generated content may miss nuanced interpretations
• Requires careful fact-checking

Best for

• Revision, summarising lecture notes, and interactive study sessions.

Try this

• Upload a lecture transcript or seminar notes and ask it to generate a list of FAQs or key takeaways from the session.

QuillBot is a paraphrasing and summarising tool that helps you rework your writing. It’s handy for improving clarity, varying sentence structure, and avoiding repetition. Use with care to avoid unintentionally changing your meaning or misrepresenting ideas.

Strengths

• Rephrases text in different tones (e.g. formal, simple, fluent)
• Builds vocabulary and writing fluency
• Supports paraphrasing to avoid self-plagiarism
• Helpful for students with dyslexia or language barriers

Weaknesses

• Can alter meaning if overused or unchecked
• Occasionally produces awkward or overly generic phrasing

Best for

• Refining draft paragraphs
• Improving sentence variety and flow
• Reworking repeated phrases or formalising your tone

Try this

• Paste a paragraph from your draft and try different rewriting styles to improve clarity or tone

Scholarcy summarises academic papers and highlights key details like findings, methods, and limitations. It can help to make long or complex texts easier to scan and understand.

Strengths

• Pull out key facts, methods, and conclusions
• Help build searchable research libraries
• Can adjust summaries for different reading levels

Weaknesses

• Risk of surface-level understanding
• May miss nuanced arguments or important caveats
• Sometimes struggle with technical or specialised content

Best for

• Reducing information overload
• Scanning papers during early-stage research
• Organising and reviewing your reading

Try this

• Upload a journal article and use the summary panel to check your grasp of the findings and limitations before reading the full text.