6. Key AI tools and training

The University of Queensland Library

6. Key AI tools and training

We recommend some useful tools for:

text
Image
audio or video generation.

You can also find a range of tools at websites such as Hugging Face.

Criteria for choosing an AI tool


Criteria	What to check and why it matters
Coverage	Is the model trained on diverse datasets? — Does it perpetuate stereotypes or cultural assumptions? Review the developer’s transparency reports or ethical use guidelines (e.g., OpenAI’s System Cards or Anthropic’s Constitutional AI). – Consider: Would the outputs reflect global, regional, or Western-centric worldviews?
Biases	Does the tool draw from peer-reviewed academic content or general web sources? Tools like Perplexity.ai or NotebookLM may prioritise scholarly sources. Evaluate how well it can handle your topic (e.g., specialised terminology in medicine, law, or education). Also check for temporal coverage (e.g., is it updated post-2023?)
Data security	Is your input stored or used for training? Review the tool’s privacy policy and terms of use. – Can you delete or export your data? Tools from universities (e.g., UQ’s Copilot access) may have internal safeguards vs. third-party tools with commercial incentives. Ask: Would you use this tool for confidential data?
Price	Is the free version sufficient, or do key features (e.g., GPT-4, Claude 3, Gemini Pro) require a subscription? Consider student pricing or institutional access (e.g., MS Copilot for UQ staff). Compare costs if using multiple tools for different media types (e.g., DALL-E + Synthesia). – Budget for long-term needs if planning ongoing use.
Language	Does it support the languages you need for input/output or translation? Tools like Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini support many major languages, but quality varies. Assess usability in non-English contexts, especially for bilingual tasks (e.g., Chinese-English research, Arabic translation support). – Check for interface accessibility in your native language.

Read about AI tools for literature searching. There are many new AI tools available to researchers and students that focus on academic sources (rather than general AI tools such as Copilot or ChatGPT).

Tools for text generation

AI tool	Company	Type/Use	Costs
Claude	Anthropic	LLM	Free/ Subscriptions
ChatGPT	OpenAI	LLM/Search engine	Free/Subscriptions (varies according to model)
MS CoPilot	Microsoft	LLM	Available to UQ staff
Gemini	Google	LLM	Free
Perplexity	Perplexity AI	Search engine using LLM	Free/Subscription
NotebookLM	Google	Research assistant using LLM (Gemini 2.0)	Free/Subscription

Tools for image generation

AI tool	Company	Type/Use	Cost
Dall-E 3	OpenAI	Text to Image AI	Available via Chat GPT
Leonardo Ai	Leonardo Interactive	Text to Image AI	Free/Subscriptions
Ideogram 2.0	Ideogram	Text to Image AI	Free (40 Images a month)/Subscription
Adobe Firefly	Adobe	Text to Image AI	Include in Adobe products
Stable Assistant	Stability AI	Text to Image AI	Subscription

Tools for audio or video generation

AI tool	Company	Type/Use	Cost
Elevenlabs	ElevenLabs	Text to speech	Free/Subscription
Synthesia	Synthesia	Text to video	Free/Subscription
AIVA	Aiva Technologies	Music generation	Free/Subscription
Runway	Runway	Music generation	Free/Subscription
HeyGen Interactive Avatar	HeyGen	Text to video (uses avatars)	Free/Subscription
NotebookLM	Google	Podcasts, research assistant	Free/Subscription

Training and resources

Training at UQ

The Library and Student Support and Wellbeing both offer training on artificial intelligence.

Visit StudentHub to register to attend.
More training appears on UQ’s AI Student Hub.

The Library training contains details for all of our training.

Online learning

LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning online courses are available to staff and students via your UQ login.

Career Essentials in Generative AI by Microsoft and LinkedIn – The 6 courses in this pathway include:
- What is Generative AI?
- Generative AI: The Evolution of Thoughtful Online Search
- Streamlining Your Work with Copilot (formerly Bing Chat/Bing Chat Enterprise)
- Microsoft 365 Copilot First Look
- Ethics in the Age of Generative AI
- Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
Building AI literacy – The 6 courses in this pathway include:
- Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
- How to boost your productivity with AI tools
- What is Generative AI?
- Prompt Engineering: How to talk to the AIs
- Introduction to Large Language Models
- Responsible AI: Principles and Practical Applications

To find more courses or pathways on LinkedIn Learning:

1. Go to LinkedIn Learning
2. Enter Artificial Intelligence in the search bar
3. Use the filters to adjust the results to suit you.

Google

Google’s Generative AI Learning Path provides an overview of generative AI concepts, from the fundamentals of large language models to responsible AI principles. The 6 courses in this pathway include:

Introduction to Generative AI
Introduction to Large Language Models
Introduction to Responsible AI
Generative AI Fundamentals
Responsible AI: Applying AI Principles with Google Cloud.

Free online course

Elements of AI is a free online course for everyone interested in learning what AI is, what is possible (and not possible) with AI, and how it affects our lives — with no complicated maths or programming required.

Licence

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Artificial Intelligence: Revised version Copyright © 2023 by The University of Queensland is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.