AI tools
Guidance on selecting generative AI tools to use for your studies, teaching or research
This guidance is applicable to all students and to staff involved in teaching or supporting learning at The Tavistock and Portman.
Introduction to Generative AI tools
Generative AI (GenAI) tools such as ChatGPT are becoming increasingly useful for studying, researching, writing and presenting. We recommend trying out different GenAI tools to develop your understanding of them. All GenAI tools should be used appropriately and with care.
Before using AI tools
Before you begin using any specific GenAI tools, read our guides to getting started with AI and using AI appropriately.
Using GenAI tools at the Tavistock Centre
The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust restricts access to many GenAI tools from The Tavistock and Portman computers. For example, you cannot use ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude or Perplexity on the Trust’s computers in the Library or Student Work Space.
This restriction reflects a common NHS position that advises against the use of publicly available GenAI by NHS staff in the workplace. This is due to perceived risks associated with these platforms, especially around data security and the handling of sensitive information.
You can use these tools on personal devices, including when you are at the Tavistock Centre, following our guidance on using AI appropriately.
GenAI tools for general use
Common GenAI tools include ChatGPT, Copilot Chat, Gemini and Claude. These tools are good for summarising, developing outlines, grammar correction, translation and search.
Recommended GenAI tools
Our recommendations for general GenAI tools are based on advice from Jisc, the digital, data and technology agency for UK higher education.
Students and staff with Office 365 access: Copilot Chat
If you have access to Office 365 via University of Essex, UEL or The Tavistock and Portman, we recommend you use Copilot Chat after signing in to your organisation’s Microsoft account.
Using Copilot Chat, when you are signed into your organisation’s Microsoft account, provides a greater degree of data protection. When signed in, you will see your name and a green shield on the Copilot Chat page, which shows your data is better protected.
Staff and students without Office 365 access: Google Gemini or ChatGPT
If you don’t have access to Office 365 then our recommended free options are ChatGPT or Google Gemini.
Using the free publicly available versions of ChatGPT or Google Gemini means your data will not be protected, and your data will be used to train the AI models behind them.
Examples of GenAI other tools
This collated list of GenAI tools provides a starting point. It is a list of suggestions, not endorsements.
We have organised our list to highlight different potential uses for AI, but some tools can serve multiple purposes. All offer free-to-use options at the time of writing, although there might be limits on the features available or how much you can use them without paying.
Literature search
EBSCO AI tools
The library’s subscription resources from EBSCO now include built-in AI tools. Discovery has a ‘natural language’ search option which uses AI to convert research questions or statements into search queries and aims to make it easier to find the material you want. Some articles in EBSCO also offer the option to ‘Generate AI Insights’, which provides a summary of up to five key points from the full text.
Consensus
Finds research relevant to a given question, highlighting key sections that provide potential answers, and indicates how much agreement there is in the literature. It can help you quickly grasp insights by providing ‘study snapshots’ and indicators of how often a paper has been cited.
Elicit
A search service that lets you type in a research question and uses AI to match it to papers without you needing to provide alternative search terms or synonyms. It provides summaries of abstracts and lets you analyse papers by method, outcomes and more.
Research Rabbit
An AI-powered literature discovery and mapping tool that helps researchers find, visualise, and organise scholarly papers. It offers citation mapping and can deliver personalised recommendations based on user preferences.
Summary or document Q&A
Claude
Summarise long documents into concise overviews, extracting key points and conclusions. Claude can also answer specific questions about document content by analysing the text and providing relevant responses to help with understanding.
Humata
Automatically summarises documents you upload, and allows you to ask questions about the content – it will even suggest questions to help get you started. Answers provided include citations from relevant sections in your documents to let you trace the source of insights.
General search
Perplexity
A chat-based AI that searches the web and gives you answers to your questions, with links to where the information was found. It also suggests follow-up questions to help you explore areas further.
You.com
General search engine and chatbot, with unlimited access to its ‘Smart’ search service. The free version also allows limited searches on its more specialist chatbots such as its ‘Research’ and ‘Creative’ AI agents.
Spelling and grammar
Grammarly
Reviews spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, engagement, and delivery mistakes in English texts. Can be accessed online or plugins are available to check within Word, Google Docs and Outlook.
Wordtune
The free version of Wordtune offers unlimited spelling and grammar checks, but there are there are daily and monthly limits on AI suggestions, rewrites and summarisations. Can be accessed online or plugins are available to check within Word, plus the Google and Edge browsers.
Image generation
Adobe Firefly
Use text prompts to generate images and even video, with the option to use different AI models, including multiple versions of Adobe Firefly, Google models and GPT Image.
StarryAI
Generate images with text prompts to get results in a wide range of styles – including various types of illustrations and photo-realistic scenes. Includes the option to copy the text prompts from already-created images on the site.
Presentation generation
Gamma
Creates visually appealing presentations, documents or websites. Type in text prompts to describe what you need, then Gamma’s AI will generate complete slides in seconds. The results can include text and images, which you can edit.
Visme
The free version gives you credits to create slides and suggest wording and structure for your presentation. The built-in AI chatbot function will ask you questions about your presentation to get better insight into what you’d like to present.