We recommended Copilot due to UTSW work data protection and integration with other Microsoft 365 applications. You should see a green shield with a checkmark—this indicates the enterprise data protection is applied.
In May 2023 (updated annually), ZDNET curated the list of best AI chatbots and AI writers. The author reviewed each program’s capabilities and which individual uses each program would excel at. Other factors included reliability, availability, and cost. The list is updated annually.
|
Best AI chatbot |
Price |
Language model |
Current events capability |
Key features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Free ($20-a-month Plus premium plan; $200-a-month Pro plan) | OpenAI's GPT-5.2 | Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet | Can generate text, solve math problems, and do coding. Offers conversational capabilities. |
|
Copilot |
Free ($20/month Pro plan; additional 365 integration plans) |
OpenAI's GPT-5.2, Claude models also available |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet |
Works like a search engine with information on current events. |
|
Claude |
Free (Pro $20/month for five times the usage limit) |
Claude Sonnet 4.5 |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet |
Users can upload documents such as PDFs to receive summaries and get questions answered. |
| Perplexity.ai | Free ($20/month for unlimited Pro searches and advanced features) | Uses different LLMs, including GPT-5, Claude Sonnet 4.5, Gemini 2.5 Pro, or Perplexity's Sonar. | Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet |
Can provide prompt suggestions based on current events. Can limit to academic sources. |
|
Jasper |
Starts at $39/month |
Uses different LLMs, including GPT-5, Claude Sonnet 4.5, or Gemini 2.5 Pro. |
Focuses on written text; has copyediting features and plagiarism checker |
Can summarize texts and generate paragraphs and product descriptions. Has over 50 different writing templates including blog posts, Twitter threads, and video scripts. |
|
You.com |
Free (Pro $20/month to access premium AI models and advanced features) |
Most leading LLMs |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet. |
Outputs an answer to anything you input including math, coding, translating, and writing prompts. Lists sources for the text it generates. |
|
ChatSonic |
Starts at $12/month, depends on words and users |
Most leading LLMs |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet |
Offers voice dictation, AI image generation, and more. |
|
Gemini |
Free (Advanced $20/month) |
Gemini 3.0 |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet via Google |
Can provide relevant and useful writing assistance. |
|
Socratic |
Free |
From Google |
Kid-friendly; can help with homework |
Children can type in any question and Socratic will generate a conversational, human-like response with fun unique graphics. |
| HuggingChat | Free | HuggingFace | Can have access to the internet if you'd like to. | You can build your own chatbot using HuggingChat that suits your needs. |
More information about each AI chatbot is provided on each tab listed above.
Source: The best AI chatbots of 2025: ChatGPT and other noteworthy alternatives | ZDNET
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Image generation | Gets very naggy asking for login |
| Good code results | Wrong language response from web lookup |
| Large ecosystem |
*Licenses provided to select UTSW affiliates.
ChatGPT is a conversational AI chatbot by OpenAI that can produce text for you based on any prompt you input, generating emails, essays, poems, raps, grocery lists, letters, and much more. It was released in November 2022. Due to its massive success, it became the blueprint for many of chatbots to enter the scene, including Copilot (formerly Bing Chat).
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Deep Microsoft integration on paid plans | Slow image generation |
| Good responses overall | Blocked image topics |
| Web access | Too many premium plans and options. |
*Licenses provided to UTSW affiliates.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Great images | Issues translating certain languages |
| Solid answers to factual questions | Unhelpful outputs |
| Many Google-centric integrations |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Good sourcing at the top of each answer | Lots of nags |
| Nice images, but limited runs | Some irrelevant suggestions |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Upload document support | Unclear usage cap |
| Chat controls | Knowledge cut off |
| Light and dark mode |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| 50 different writing templates | Need a subscription to try |
| Copyediting features | Steep costs, starting at $49/month |
| Plagiarism checker |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Readily available | Some answers stronger than others |
| Source citing | Subscription required for GPT-4 access |
| Free |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Up-to-date | Need to sign in |
| Variety of use cases | A bit of a lag |
| Free trial |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Easy to use | Doesn’t write text |
| Educational | No desktop version |
| Free |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Customizable | Intermediate/advanced skills needed |
| Clean UI | Have to create an account |
| Free |
The Artificial Intelligence (AI) Guide provides an introduction to this evolving field for faculty, fellows, residents, postdocs, students, and staff. Due to the rapid advancement of this emerging technology, information in the Guide may become outdated at times.
For information on Artificial Intelligence (AI) Data Security and Privacy, see Artificial Intelligence (AI) Data Security and Privacy - Information Resources (utsouthwestern.net), VPN/On Campus access only. NOTE: this Guide supplements but does not supersede information provided by UT Southwestern or University of Texas policies and guidelines.