Best AI Tools for Students and Research

Author: Tomas Staniulis, AI Consultant

We live in an era of rapid progress. When I was born, phones had rotary dials, Coca-Cola hadn’t yet come in plastic bottles, and music played from magnetic tapes. Four decades later, reality is vastly different – I communicate with colleagues via video calls, the largest plastic island in the Pacific Ocean is three times the size of France, and with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, I can learn more in a month than I once could in a year of general education!

Today, AI tools are becoming indispensable for anyone conducting research – they fundamentally change the processes of data processing and analysis. By utilizing AI, researchers can analyze large datasets more efficiently and accurately, reduce the likelihood of errors, and ensure higher research quality.

Natural language processing enables researchers to easily structure textual data, gather resources, conduct literature reviews, and perform a myriad of other tasks.

Below are the best 4 AI tools that can support self-education, from academic pursuits to applications in business or everyday life:

1. Perplexity – AI-Powered Search Engine

Perplexity, a startup that has attracted significant investment, is valued at $9 billion this year, and it’s rightly seen as a potential alternative to ChatGPT or Google. Perplexity is an AI-based search engine that allows users to quickly and accurately find structured and clear answers to the most complex questions.

Using advanced natural language processing technologies, Perplexity understands and interprets queries, including data processing, and provides related contextual answers drawn from thousands of academic articles and sources. The user interface is friendly and intuitive, making it easy to use, and questions can be entered in natural language.

Functionality: Perplexity stands out with its ability to search not only the internet but also specialized databases. Users can choose among these search categories:

• Web: Search for information on the internet from open sources.
• Academic: Explore academic articles and publications.
• Math: Solve math problems and get numerical answers.
• Writing: Create text using natural language processing algorithms.

Free Plan: Includes basic functions with up to 5 PRO searches per day. The paid version starts at $20 per month and includes a bonus of free access to other models like ChatGPT-4 and Claude 3.

Perplexity Prompt: Explain cognitive dissonance theory, analyze its application in consumer behavior and marketing, review key research, and provide real-world examples.

2. PaperGuide – “Communication” with PDF Files and Other Documents

PaperGuide is an AI-based platform that simplifies the research process for both beginners and professionals. One of the key features of PaperGuide is the ability to interact directly with PDF documents. This means that not only can users look up specific researchers or their work, but they can also ask questions directly within the text, with the AI responding in real time based on the content. Additionally, users can upload their own PDF documents and interact with them as if speaking to a person.

Functionality: Beyond the previously mentioned feature of interacting with documents, PaperGuide enables AI-powered searches to identify the most relevant, up-to-date information and sources on a selected topic. This is especially valuable for structuring and synthesizing vast amounts of information. Additional features include:

• Literature Review: Simplifies the literature review process by helping locate and summarize related studies.
• Extract Data: Quickly extracts and processes essential information from documents.
• Reference Manager: A citation management tool for organizing, annotating, and referencing sources.
• AI Writing Assistant: Assists in drafting, editing, and citing within documents.

Free Version: Offers 10 AI-generated content responses per day and 500 MB of storage. It also allows interaction with PDF documents and provides access to summaries, reference management, and open-access article interaction. Paid versions with unlimited responses range from $10 to $17 per month.

PaperGuide Prompt: Provide key data about [sector] companies, including financials, market trends, and competitive positioning. Highlight data on revenue growth and market share, and emphasize any risks or opportunities impacting future outlooks.

3. Scite – AI Research Tool

Scite_ is an AI-powered research tool designed to enhance the academic research process, assisting in finding scholarly papers and specific researchers working on a desired topic. Its standout feature is Smart Citations, which classify author citations as supportive, contrasting, or mentioning the work, helping users better understand an article’s impact and reliability. The user interface is dashboard-based, making it easy to monitor searches and their history.

Functionality: Scite’s convenience is enhanced by its browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari, allowing users to see real-time citation contexts as they browse the web. Key features include:

• AI Assistant: A virtual assistant that can answer research questions based on an extensive database, making it easier to locate literature sources and synthesize information.
• Citation Statement Search: Allows users to search for specific terms within citation statements, helping to find how particular topics or methods are discussed in the scientific literature.
• Reference Check: By uploading one’s own article, users can see how the sources were cited by other authors, ensuring the work is based on reliable scientific studies.

Free Plan: A 7-day free trial is available, after which the cost is around $19 per month.

Scite Prompt: Provide 5 studies from the past five years highlighting effective strategies for improving employee productivity. I’m particularly interested in research examining the impact of remote work, flexible schedules, and leadership styles on employee performance.

4. Elicit – AI Assistant for Research

Elicit is an AI-based assistant designed to automate specific tasks in the research process. It can extract, synthesize, and review literature, making it a valuable tool for researchers in various fields. With over 2 million users, Elicit is popular in academic and business environments and is utilized by organizations such as Google and NASA. The interface is user-friendly, contributing to its growing user base.

Functionality: Elicit’s AI model navigates a database of over 125 million academic articles, providing a comprehensive literature review on virtually any topic, including the most recent data from late 2023 or even mid-2024. Key features include:

• Find Papers: Searches the database and identifies articles even if keywords aren’t exact.
• Extract Data from PDF: Extracts specific information from academic articles and organizes it in tables for easier comparison and analysis.
• List of Concepts: Analyzes the research topic and provides a list of concepts associated with the search terms, helping users grasp related themes and broader context.

Free Plan: Includes unlimited searches and summaries of up to four articles at a time, as well as data extraction from up to 10 uploaded PDFs per month. Paid plans range from $10 to $42 per month, allowing more data extraction, file uploads, and data export in various formats.

Elicit Prompt: I am researching the application of neural networks in AI. Summarize key studies and recent advances related to real-world applications. Include trends, results, risks, and challenges.

In summary, with the support of AI, science is set to reach new heights in the next 5–7 years. We are likely to witness exponential breakthroughs, especially as a new generation of researchers and scientists who view AI as indispensable to their work emerges.

Author: Tomas Staniulis, AI Consultant

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