We’ve all heard of ChatGPT, but let’s be honest – it’s a bit of a supercharged Google. AI-powered chatbots are fun, but what if you need to get some real work done? Thankfully, AI isn’t just helping schoolkids generate essays or assisting office drones craft an appropriate work email. These AI tools can save you serious time by helping you be more productive.
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1. ChatPDF
Price: Free with premium options
Platforms: Online
If you’re someone who has to contend with lengthy reports and research papers in PDF format, you’re in luck. Back when artificial intelligence was merely a plot point for B-movies found in the deepest corners of your local Blockbuster, you’d have to suffer through, reading every page. However, thanks to the AI-powered ChatPDF, you can have a conversation with your PDF instead, and get it to elicit the information you need.
Uploading a PDF to ChatPDF allows you to view the PDF in the left pane, while a chat prompt similar to ChatGPT sits on the right. To interact with your PDF, input a question, hit the enter key, and sit back and watch as the results are generated. For example, you can input something general like “summarize this article” or ask more specific questions.
There are some caveats. First, the maximum file size ChatPDF can handle is 32MB. If you have a particularly large PDF, you’ll need to split it into multiple files. Secondly, the tool is free – to an extent. Attempting to read larger PDFs (25MB+) will prompt you to pay for a subscription.
2. PlusAI
Price: $10/month (Basic), $20/month (Pro), Custom Quote (Enterprise)
Platforms: Online (Google Slides)
Making presentations can be incredibly time-consuming. This is especially true for the non-sadists who like to do something other than black text on a white background. Fortunately, Plus AI can help automate some of the more tedious aspects of creating digital presentations. Plus AI works as an add-on for Google Slides (sorry Microsoft PowerPoint users) and has a number of prompts and tools to help you compose engaging presentations in a matter of minutes.
Need company stats displayed in an eye-catching pie chart? No problem. Have a lengthy company report that needs to be summarized in concise bullet points? Plus AI will trim the fat. Want your presentation color scheme to match your company logo? Consider it done. In addition, share themes with your entire team to ensure consistency. While Plus AI isn’t free, you can test it for seven days to see if it meets your needs. After that, you’re looking at different pricing tiers, depending on what features you’re after.
3. Otter.ai
Price: Free with premium options
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Mobile
With Otter.ai, you can say goodbye to taking meeting notes. Otter.ai syncs with Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Google Meet and more, and automatically generates meeting notes. Otter.ai produces real-time transcriptions and notes of
presentations and meetings. This allows meeting participants to remain present and engaged with colleagues. Users can even chat with Otter and ask questions about the meeting, essentially condensing long meetings into the most relevant bite-sized chunks of information!
In addition, Otter.ai will generate action and summary emails and even Slack posts to help delegate tasks and parlay key information to others. It can even capture screenshots of slides so that you can easily attach them to emails or share via Slack. Otter.ai is free to try; however, there are limitations, most notably a cap of 300 transcription minutes per month. Otter.ai has two other subscription tiers, the cheapest of which is $10 per month. They also offer an Enterprise version, but pricing is dependent on the needs of the organization.
4. Summerize.tech
Price: Free
Platforms: Online
The Summarize.tech website may not look like much, but it is incredibly useful. This AI-powered tool can summarize long YouTube videos. Pop in a YouTube URL, and you’ll be presented with a text summarization of the video’s contents. In addition, Summarize.tech provides more in-depth summaries of specific sections of the video, complete with hyperlinked timestamps that bring you to that exact moment in the video. This is incredibly useful, especially when you’re dealing with a long video and want to jump to a specific part.
For example, refer to the screenshot above. The video details how to perform various upgrades on a gaming laptop. Summarize.tech does a nice job of boiling the video down to the most pertinent information. Furthermore, it also provides timestamps that bring you back to that moment of the video on YouTube. Say goodbye to suffering through long-winded YouTube channels, thanks to Summarize.tech.
5. Claude
Price: Free with premium option
Platforms: Online
Like ChatGPT, Claude is a chatbot. That said, Claude manages to set itself apart amongst a sea of competitors. The goal of Claude’s developer, Anthropic, is to create a chatbot with humanlike fluency and accuracy. That’s all well and good, but that’s not the reason Claude is on this list. The real reason is that Claude has the ability to process significantly more input – up to 75,000 words at a time.
Not many people are going to type a 75,000-word diatribe into a chatbot. The more practical way to use the 75,000-word limit is by answering a series of questions. Unlike ChatGPT, Claude remembers previous input and can expand upon its responses. This means that Claude can handle complex multi-step instructions and handle large amounts of content. Claude is in a beta testing phase right now and is free to use, but there are some usage limitations, unless you opt for a paid subscription.
6. Podcastle
Price: Free with premium options
Platforms: Windows, macOS, iOS
As I’m sure you’re aware, podcasts have exploded in popularity. There’s literally a podcast for every niche interest. In fact, podcasts are so ubiquitous that there’s a good chance that you know someone who has one! Or maybe you were thinking about starting one yourself! Either way, you’re going to want to keep Podcastle in mind once you’re ready to hit the record button.
Podcastle is a suite of software designed to make podcasting easy, employing a host of AI tools to help. The most useful is the audio editor. Podcastle’s AI can automatically edit your recorded material by finding and eliminating silence and removing all of the awkward um’s and ah’s. In addition, Podcastle boasts AI-generated voices. Simply type in your script, and Podcastle will read it back in human-like voices. In addition, Podcastle has other tools, including a virtual recording studio, a video editor, and an automated publishing assistant. Podcastle has a free tier that can get you started, as well as various subscription tiers that give you access to more advanced features.
Good to know: also check out the best apps for recording podcasts with guests.
7. Murf
Price: Free with premium options
Platforms: Online
If you’re anything like me, you hate hearing the sound of your own voice. I’d even go so far as describing it as “cringe-worthy.” Thanks to AI, you’ll never have to record your voice again. Murf is an AI voice generator that boasts over 120 text-to-speech voices in over 20 languages. In addition, you can fine-tune the voiceover Murf generates: tweak the pitch, speed, punctuation and emphasis to tailor the sound to your liking.
What sets Murf apart is its voices: real human beings. This makes your voiceovers sound natural, essentially the opposite of those awful robotic voices all over TikTok. To top it all off, Murf is super user-friendly. Upload your typed transcript, and Murf will do the rest. There are various subscription plans available that range from about $20 per month upwards; however, Murf is free to try. The trial allows you to play around with all the features Murf offers, but you’ll be limited to only 10 minutes of voice generation. Furthermore, you won’t be able to download any of the audio files.
Despite the naysayers, Artificial Intelligence is here to stay. It is already proving itself to be a transformative technology and will only continue to do so as it becomes more powerful and capable. The best AI tools can help with productivity, allowing us to reclaim more of our time.
Image credit: Pexels. All screenshots by Ryan Lynch.
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Ryan Lynch –
Staff Writer
Ryan is an English & Film Studies teacher. He splits his time between Australia and the United States. He passes the time on long haul flights by playing retro video games from his youth.
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