All of us have heard of the adage that “change is the only constant”. Indeed the world that we live in is in a constant state of flux but some pivotal landmark changes like Artificial Intelligence or AI shape the course of the future for a significant time to come.
Consumer AI Tools have served as a catalyst for innovation and almost all major software makers are hopping on the bandwagon and addressing their FOMO by adding at least some AI features to their products.
While the AI revolution is still emerging, it’s crucial to acquaint yourself with and adjust your workflow accordingly for the future. Let’s talk about some of the best AI tools that you should know about to stay at the top of your game.
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All AI image generators work in a similar way: you provide a text prompt, and they respond with an image. All images in this article are AI-generated. Most AI platforms also allow you to customize the generated images via companion editor apps to match your style. While they do offer significant productivity benefits by enabling you to quickly generate images for your articles or presentations, they are also constrained by limitations such as aspect ratio, copyright issues, licensing fees, and more.
Here are a few of the best options that you can try and decide which one suits your needs the best.
Dalle3 – Dalle from Open AI is perhaps the most popular AI image generation tool that you can easily access via Chat GPT+ ($20 per month), Windows CoPilot or Microsoft Designer.
Adobe Firefly – Adobe Firefly is a great option if you are used to editing your image using Photoshop. You can generate an image or portions of it using AI and then edit the elements directly in Photoshop. The customisation options are very well sorted and you can try it for free using the web app.
Midjourney – Even though it’s not very user-friendly, Midjourney is considered the most powerful AI generator available as of today and can be accessed via Discord. You can license it starting from $10 per month for 200 images/month and commercial usage rights.
Generative AI – Generative AI by Getty is powered by the Nvidia Picasso model and is great for generating stock-live images for commercial use. There is no free web trial for the tool and the paid version starts from $14.99 for 100 AI generations.
Gemini – Gemini is a free tool that you can use to generate 1:1 images. Its ability to generate images of people has been temporarily withdrawn but you can still use it for realistic images related to objects, animals, landscapes and more.
Best AI Image Generator | Free Plan/ trial | Starting subscription price |
Dalle3 | Try for free with Copilot | $20/ month |
Adobe Firefly | Yes | Bundled with Adobe Creative Cloud |
Midjourney | No | $10/ month |
Generative AI | Yes | $14.99 for 100 credits |
Gemini | Yes | $19.99/ month |
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Apart from generating images from text prompts, AI can also help creators save time and effort by making it simpler to edit existing images. Most of the popular photo editing apps are now integrating AI tools and here are some that are doing a good job of it.
Adobe Photoshop – Adobe Photoshop uses Adobe Firefly for the “Generative Fill” feature. This works like ‘content aware’ only smarter and can help you fill the blank canvas of your choice without unduly stretching your image.
Microsoft Designer – Microsoft Designer is a basic browser-based photo editor that lets you generate and edit images using AI. You can upload photos from your PC or smartphone or generate one using text prompts. You can then edit them or use different layouts and themes to add texts, shapes and effects to
Canva – Canva is another popular photo editor that caters to both amateurs and professionals. Their AI integration simplifies tasks like eliminating backgrounds. Pro version and team plans will give you access to many more AI tools including Magic Media, Eraser, Instant Presentations, Translate, and more. These tools streamline tasks from generating images based on text prompts to creating full presentations.
Topaz Photo AI – Topaz Photo AI is a desktop software for MacOS and Windows that uses AI to enhance photo quality. It excels in noise and blur reduction and is great for tasks like restoring old photos and object removal. It focuses on enhancement rather than drastic changes and is thus a good option to use alongside other conventional editors.
Photoleap – Photoleap is certainly one of the best AI photo editors for smartphones. It has a ton of AI tools and features that enable users to change backgrounds, remove objects, create collages, and apply filters. There are also cool animated effects that transform still photos into motion videos. While many features are available for free, you will have to subscribe to access the full suite.
Best AI Photo Editor | Free Plan/ trial | Starting subscription price |
Adobe Photoshop | Yes | $22 |
Microsoft Designer | Yes | Bundled with Microsoft 365 |
Canva | Yes | $9.99/ month |
Topaz Photo AI | No | $199 (lifetime) |
Photoleap | Yes | $19.99/ month |
AI video generators can simplify video creation a great deal. You can use them to create video excerpts using voice prompts or make AI avatars narrate your script. You can also then export these videos into AI scripts.
Sora – Sora, developed by OpenAI, promises unparalleled visual quality, surpassing AI video generators currently in play. However, as of now, Sora is not yet accessible to the public (launch is expected towards the end of 2024). If the product turns out as good as the Open AI’s demos promise, this could be the premier choice in its category.
Descript – Descript is an all-in-one audio and video editing software for Windows and Mac operating systems. It can automatically generate transcriptions using text-to-speech technology, allowing users to edit videos by editing text. This makes it simpler to edit videos and podcasts. The interface is quite user-friendly and you can easily implement jump cuts, visual elements, and sound effects. However, occasional inaccuracies in transcription may occur. Despite this drawback, Descript can be a valuable time-saving tool. You can experience the tool using the basic free version.
Runway – Runway is a video generator that you can use to experiment with Generative AI. You can use it to convert text to video, an image to video or even refine a video to a unique video. You can choose between different styles or add motion to specific parts of your video. The best part is that you can try it for free. The end result is however not very realistic and far from perfect.
DeepBrain AI – DeepBrain AI is another popular text-to-video tool and offers various useful presets like presentations and sales pitches. Mastering the tool is easy with customization options including voice actors, backgrounds, and more. There is ChatGPT integration to help with scripts and there is a certain realism to the generated videos.
Synthesia – Synthesia is best suited if you want your script to be delivered by AI avatars. All you need to do is add your script, select an avatar and choose a style. This AI-driven video generator produces lifelike videos effortlessly and also serves as a post-production solution. It offers over 160 AI avatars and supports over 60 languages, it’s suitable for a global clientele. The best part is that no prior editing or on-camera experience is required to use this tool.
Best AI Video Generator | Free Plan/ trial | Starting subscription price |
Sora | – | – |
Descript | Yes | $12/ month |
Runway | Yes | $10/ month |
DeepBrain AI | Yes | $30/ month |
Synthesia | Yes | $30/ month |
AI chatbots based on large language models played a big role in familiarizing the public with AI. They present an alternative to search and can directly revert with whatever people are looking for – be it code, information or even pictures. There are many AI chatbot options available as of today and we will list some of the best ones that you must try.
Chat GPT – Open AI’s Chat GPT is a front-runner in the category that has been integrated across different software and platforms including Microsoft’s Bing and Copilot. You can use it for a variety of tasks including writing, editing, coding, image generation, and more.
Gemini – Gemini is a free AI chatbot that is getting smarter with every upgrade. Gemini has Google’s backing and thus benefits from the large amount of data that the Mountain View Giant has access to. It can now also generate images and answer your search queries based on real-time data. Gemini integrates with Google services and also powers AI smarts on some Android smartphones.
Perplexity AI – Perplexity AI is a handy search and exploration tool if you are researching for information on the internet. It can deliver in-depth information backed by sources, which you can cross-verify if needed.
Semrush ContentShake AI – ContentShake AI is specifically designed for content marketing and is better equipped for tasks like generating SEO-optimized content ideas, writing drafts, and optimizing content for readability. This handy tool leverages Semrush’s SEO data to inform its suggestions and content generation.
Claude: Anthropic AI’s Claude is a versatile AI chatbot that offers natural conversations. It is great for tasks like summarization, editing, and decision-making. Claude’s creativity and human-like tone make it useful for content creation. With a maximum token length of 200,000, roughly 150,000 words, Claude can accommodate entire books or extensive code excerpts for analysis.
Best AI Chatbot | Free Plan/ trial | Starting subscription price |
Chat GPT | Yes | $20/ month |
Gemini | Yes | $19.99/ month |
Perplexity AI | Yes | $10/ month |
Semrush ContentShake AI | yes | $60/ month |
Claude | Yes | $20/ month |
AI presentation makers can assist you with beautifying your slides. They take care of the aesthetics by automating tasks such as slide design, content suggestions, and layout optimisation while you can focus on the content.
Slides AI – Slides AI is a Chrome extension for Google Slides that supports over 100 languages. Based on text prompts or topic input, it can swiftly generate up to 10-page presentations. Slides AI has a simple interface and is easy to use. Limited features include text generation, slide creation, and formatting. Magic Write paraphrases, suggests images and aids in citation searches. This is an efficient tool for basic presentation.
Beautiful AI – Beautiful.ai offers smart design recommendations and streamlines the process by taking care of the aesthetics, allowing users to focus on content. It includes customizable templates and can add smart charts for data visualization, and analytics to track slide engagement. Notable positives include insightful analytics for slide impact assessment, secure sharing, and seamless integration with PowerPoint.
Gamma AI – Gamma AI is an engaging presentation maker that stands out for its ability to embed various media types, including GIFs and videos, and offers nested cards for detailed exploration. Some notable highlights include smart templates, brand customization options, and a user-friendly interface.
Best AI Presentation Maker | Free Plan/ trial | Starting subscription price |
Slides AI | Yes | $10/ month |
Beautiful AI | Yes | $12/ month |
Gamma AI | Yes | $10/ month |
AI chatbots and tools can help coders with debugging support and code optimization suggestions. These tools leverage natural language processing and machine learning algorithms to understand developers’ queries and offer relevant solutions. This helps accelerate the software development process.
Git.hub Copilot – GitHub Copilot is an AI-driven code completion tool. It accelerates coding by continuously suggesting code and thus reduces the need for external references It is available in individual and Enterprise versions and supports multiple languages. While paid, there’s a free trial for students and open-source maintainers. Although imperfect, it enhances coding efficiency and fun.
Cursor.sh – Cursor.sh is a fork of Visual Studio Code with Chat Gpt integrated directly into it. You can feed it the entire code base, you can reference document links that it will pull from when generating code. It also allows referencing external documents through links. For programmers, this is a very handy tool.
CodiumAI – CodiumAI is a powerful tool that follows a community-driven approach and focuses on code integrity and reliability, particularly for Python developers. Unlike traditional testing tools, CodiumAI offers a comprehensive approach and tries to set coherence across the entire codebase, thus reducing errors. It provides intelligent recommendations for optimized and readable code, supporting various coding styles and integrating seamlessly into different workflows.
Best AI for coding | Free Plan/ trial | Starting subscription price |
Git.hub for Coding | Yes (not for all) | $10/ month |
Cursor.sh | Yes | $20/ month |
CodiumAI | Yes | $19/ month |