What difference can $10 a month make to a small company? It can get access to a generative artificial intelligence programme like Midjourney to tackle tasks in the art department. There has been a lot of fear and hype around generative AI but, whether we like it or not, it’s here to stay and it’s already changing the way we work. In the US, most adults have heard of OpenAI’s ChatGPT while only 14 per cent have tried it, according to a recent report by the Pew Research Centre. But there are other tools also and these are definitely not a fad. As funding increases in the AI sector, tech companies will continue to innovate. Here are a few tools you need to know about.
ChatGPT by OpenAI
It’s obviously the most discussed tool because of the way Microsoft has promoted it. Microsoft is a major investor in OpenAI. The tool lets users key in text-only prompts in exchange for text-only responses: “Who is a better wrestler: The Rock or Stone Cold?”, “What is the Pythagorean theorem?”, “Should I carry woollens while visiting London in October?”…. you can keep asking questions. The chatbot tends to put all the info into one place. The free version is open to everyone and there is a faster, paid version also.
Google Bard
Google has been in the AI business for a long time and instead of pushing out features that are gimmicky, the company is being extra careful. Bard is now open for access and what you get are to-the-point answers. The company is working on an update that would let users prompt Bard with images. Also, in the coming months, Bard will be able to generate images using Adobe Firefly.
Microsoft Bing
Microsoft being an investor in OpenAI has implemented ChatGPT in the Bing search engine, allowing you to write prompts to deliver text, image and video search results. For example, if you want variations of a recipe, this can be helpful. The bot cites its sources but don’t expect correct results all the time. Remember, you’ll have to download the Edge browser and log in with a Microsoft account to get this going.
Midjourney
Midjourney is a paid service and you also need to have an account (free) on Discord. It can create new images in seconds and like any chatbot, you type in a text prompt with all the details. Be as specific as possible, down to lighting and clothes a person needs to be seen wearing. To get things going, just key in “/Imagine” at the command prompt. The results are usually slightly better than on DALL-E.
DALL-E
It is owned by Open AI, the maker of ChatGPT. It works like Midjourney and is widely popular.
Dream Studio
Here’s a check that DALL-E offers — you can’t create images of public figures. Stability AI’s DreamStudio allows it. You need to create a Stability AI account or log in using Google or Discord. There are 25 credits to begin with and then you can pay $1 for an additional 100 credits.
Lensa by Prisma Labs
The app has been around for some years and it creates “avatars” when you upload pictures of yourself. It can quickly reimagine you as a cowboy, an astronaut or even a businessman. Lensa uses Stability AI’s Stable Diffusion text-to-image model.
Adobe Firefly
Adobe has a “family of creative generative AI models” called Adobe Firefly. One tool works like DALL-E or Midjourney, allowing users to take advantage of the text prompt, and another generates stylized text. You are allowed to change the background, remove objects or even zoom out of an image beyond what was captured. Firefly has been trained using Adobe Stock images and other data sets.
OtterPilot
Many journalists use Otter.ai to transcribe interviews. Using OtterPilot you can save time and increase meeting productivity by eliminating the need to take manual meeting notes. You can connect your calendar and schedule Otter to automatically join your meetings, automatically capture shared meeting slides, and automatically send an automated summary after the meeting.
Prime Voice AI by ElevenLabs
Another popular tool, it turns text into audio snippets. You can use your actual voice or one you create using the tool’s AI chops. You can tweak the AI-generated voice based on gender and age. The free plan gives 10,000 characters.