AI Tool Of The Week: This week’s AI tools focus on a common professional challenge: doing high-value work faster and with more confidence. From navigating complex patent landscapes to transforming average-looking presentations into polished decks, to turning passive learning into real mastery, these tools demonstrate how AI is moving beyond answers and into execution.
Perplexity AI: Patent Search
What problem does Perplexity AI Patent Search solve?
Innovation and R&D teams often invest months developing ideas, only to discover late in the process that similar patents already exist. This can result in expensive pivots, legal risk, or projects being abandoned after significant effort.
Traditional patent databases rely on rigid keyword searches and complex Boolean logic, making them difficult to navigate without IP expertise. Understanding the broader patent landscape across companies and geographies is time-consuming and error-prone.
Perplexity AI solves this by combining natural language search with an AI-driven patent research agent that works on a dedicated patent index. Instead of mastering search syntax, teams can ask plain-English questions and iteratively explore prior art.
How To Access
Visit perplexity.ai
What Perplexity AI Patent Search Helps You Do
- Validate ideas early:Check for related patents and prior art before committing major resources.
- Understand the landscape:See who is filing in a space, what approaches are being claimed, and where activity is concentrated.
- Identify potential whitespace:Spot underexplored areas by comparing crowded concepts with less-represented applications.
Example
Your team is developing an AI-based quality control system for manufacturing.
Step 1: Start broad:Ask: “Are there patents related to AI-driven quality control in manufacturing?”
Perplexity returns relevant patents with assignees, dates, and source links.
Step 2: Refine the scope:Follow up with: “Find patents on vision-based defect detection for automotive parts.”
Step 3: Analyse conversationally:Ask Perplexity to group patents by company, summarise core ideas, or highlight trends over time.
Step 4: Export insights:Organise results into tables or CSVs to visualise timelines, clusters, or assignee dominance.
What makes Perplexity AI Patent Search stand out?
- Natural-language first: No complex queries required.
- Automatic patent detection: Patent-focused retrieval activates automatically.
- Research accelerator, not legal advice: Fast, intuitive exploration, but not a substitute for formal legal review.
Gemini in Google Slides (Powered by Nano Banana Pro)
What problem does Gemini in Google Slides solve?
You’ve already built your presentation. The content is solid, but the slides look flat. Fixing layouts, creating infographics, cleaning up images, or sourcing visuals usually means switching tools or starting over entirely.
Google Slides with Gemini works inside your existing deck, enhancing what you’ve already created rather than replacing it. The focus is not generation from scratch, but professional-grade visual refinement without leaving Slides.
How To Access
Go to slides.new (Requires Google Workspace or Google AI Premium)
What Gemini in Google Slides Helps You Do
- Turn content into infographics:Convert bullet points and data into clean, well-designed visuals.
- Generate custom images:Create visuals that match your content context, not generic stock photos.
- Edit images inline:Remove backgrounds, replace settings, or expand images without external tools.
Examples
Beautify a slide:Prompt “Beautify this slide” and Gemini redesigns layout, colours, and graphics while keeping text intact.
Create data visuals:Ask: “Create an infographic showing customer satisfaction trends across Q3 and Q4.”
Fix image issues:Remove mismatched backgrounds from team photos or replace product image settings with a single click.
What makes Gemini in Google Slides special?
- Enhances existing work: No need to rebuild decks.
- Context-aware design: Maintains consistent look and feel.
- Powered by Nano Banana Pro: Sharp text rendering, accurate visuals, and real-world context via Google Search.
QuizGPT
What Problem Does QuizGPT Solve?
Professionals consume vast amounts of information, training sessions, certifications, and compliance updates, but retention is often weak. Passive reading creates familiarity, not mastery, and information is hard to recall when it’s actually needed.
QuizGPT addresses this by shifting learning from passive consumption to active recall, a proven method for long-term retention.
How To Access
Available to all ChatGPT users via Web or mobile.
What QuizGPT Helps You Do
- Practice active learning:Turn notes and materials into interactive flashcards.
- Test real understanding:Challenge yourself with adjustable difficulty levels.
- Convert your own content:Upload slides, PDFs, or notes to create personalised quizzes.
- Build confidence:Use spaced repetition before presentations or client discussions.
Example
A marketing manager completes a certification in programmatic advertising.
Step 1: Upload course materials
Step 2: Prompt: “Quiz me with advanced questions on programmatic advertising using QuizGPT.”
Step 3: Practice scenario-based questions that test application, not memorisation.
What makes QuizGPT stand out?
- Science-backed learning: Uses active recall and spaced repetition.
- Fully personalised: Questions are based on your materials.
- Instant feedback: Explanations reinforce understanding.
- Free access: No additional cost.
(Bindra & Magazine are the co-founders of AI&Beyond)
NOTE: The tools featured above demonstrated clear value based on internal evaluation. These recommendations are editorially independent and not influenced by the tool creators.
