Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
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Links and Codes:
Paperpal: paperpal.com/?linkId=lp_726731&sourceId=andy&tenantId=paperpal (PAP20 - 20% off)
Thesify: https://thesify.ai?fpr=andy60
Thesis AI: thesisai.io/?via=andrew, ANDY20 - 20% off
Elicit: elicit.com/?via=andrew
Elicit: elicit.com/?via=andrew
UndetectableAI: https://undetectable.ai?fpr=andy
Jenni AI: jenni.ai/?via=andy-stapleton (Use codes: andy30, ANDY20)
Julius AI: julius.ai/?via=andrew-stapleton (ANDY20 — offers 20% off)
AnswerThis: https://answerthis.io?deal=andy42 (STAPLETON10 - 10% off)
Unriddle: unriddle.ai/?ref=andrew (ANDY20 - 20 % off)
In this video, I take a closer look at how well free AI tools actually perform when applied to real academic and research tasks.
There are a lot of claims online about which tools are the most accurate, helpful, or “AI-powered,” but very few people actually put them to the test. So that’s what I did—with the help of my team, we tested multiple free AI tools including Free ChatGPT (the 4-turbo model), Claude Sonnet, Gemini 1.5 Flash, and Perplexity.
Our goal wasn’t just to play around with these models—we wanted to know which are the best free AI tools when it comes to core academic tasks like reading PDFs, correcting user errors, and retrieving accurate references. We used real research papers, created detailed prompts, and even tried to trip the tools up with misinformation to test their reliability. These are the kinds of tasks researchers and students perform every day, so the results really matter.
The video includes a detailed breakdown of how each model performed under pressure, especially in side-by-side comparisons. If you’re curious about ChatGPT vs Gemini, or whether Free ChatGPT is enough for your research needs, this video will give you evidence-based answers. I also share some surprising moments—like when an AI model agreed with fake claims I invented, or when it confidently generated references that didn’t even exist.
This wasn’t just an opinion piece. It took hours of setup, testing, and evaluation to ensure fairness and consistency across the board. I hope the results help you make informed decisions about how (and whether) to integrate these tools into your academic workflow. Whether you're a PhD student, researcher, or just someone curious about the limits of free AI tools, this video shows you what’s working—and what’s still not ready for serious research use.
Let me know in the comments what your experience has been, especially if you've tested different models yourself.
................................................
▼ ▽ TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro
00:12 Best Free LLM for Research
02:24 Interrogating PDFs
05:33 Citations
08:52 Key Takeaways
11:21 Outro
................................................
▼ ▽ Socials for shorts and reels
Instagram: instagram.com/drandystapleton
TikTok: tiktok.com/@drandystapleton
▶ Become a Master Academic Writer With AI using my course: academy.academiainsider.com/courses/ai-writing-course
▶FREE: Join 21,000+ email subscribers receiving the free tools and academic tips directly from me:
academiainsider.com/newsletter
Links and Codes:
Paperpal: paperpal.com/?linkId=lp_726731&sourceId=andy&tenantId=paperpal (PAP20 - 20% off)
Thesify: https://thesify.ai?fpr=andy60
Thesis AI: thesisai.io/?via=andrew, ANDY20 - 20% off
Elicit: elicit.com/?via=andrew
Elicit: elicit.com/?via=andrew
UndetectableAI: https://undetectable.ai?fpr=andy
Jenni AI: jenni.ai/?via=andy-stapleton (Use codes: andy30, ANDY20)
Julius AI: julius.ai/?via=andrew-stapleton (ANDY20 — offers 20% off)
AnswerThis: https://answerthis.io?deal=andy42 (STAPLETON10 - 10% off)
Unriddle: unriddle.ai/?ref=andrew (ANDY20 - 20 % off)
In this video, I take a closer look at how well free AI tools actually perform when applied to real academic and research tasks.
There are a lot of claims online about which tools are the most accurate, helpful, or “AI-powered,” but very few people actually put them to the test. So that’s what I did—with the help of my team, we tested multiple free AI tools including Free ChatGPT (the 4-turbo model), Claude Sonnet, Gemini 1.5 Flash, and Perplexity.
Our goal wasn’t just to play around with these models—we wanted to know which are the best free AI tools when it comes to core academic tasks like reading PDFs, correcting user errors, and retrieving accurate references. We used real research papers, created detailed prompts, and even tried to trip the tools up with misinformation to test their reliability. These are the kinds of tasks researchers and students perform every day, so the results really matter.
The video includes a detailed breakdown of how each model performed under pressure, especially in side-by-side comparisons. If you’re curious about ChatGPT vs Gemini, or whether Free ChatGPT is enough for your research needs, this video will give you evidence-based answers. I also share some surprising moments—like when an AI model agreed with fake claims I invented, or when it confidently generated references that didn’t even exist.
This wasn’t just an opinion piece. It took hours of setup, testing, and evaluation to ensure fairness and consistency across the board. I hope the results help you make informed decisions about how (and whether) to integrate these tools into your academic workflow. Whether you're a PhD student, researcher, or just someone curious about the limits of free AI tools, this video shows you what’s working—and what’s still not ready for serious research use.
Let me know in the comments what your experience has been, especially if you've tested different models yourself.
................................................
▼ ▽ TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro
00:12 Best Free LLM for Research
02:24 Interrogating PDFs
05:33 Citations
08:52 Key Takeaways
11:21 Outro
................................................
▼ ▽ Socials for shorts and reels
Instagram: instagram.com/drandystapleton
TikTok: tiktok.com/@drandystapleton
