5 AI tools that can save you time at work and home
Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming part of everyday life, helping people save time, stay organised and simplify tasks that once took much longer.
While AI can feel overwhelming at first, you don’t need to be a technology expert to start using it. Many AI tools are designed to assist with everyday tasks, from planning meals and organising projects to creating content and making sense of information.
Many of the tools below offer free versions, with paid options available for those who need additional features, higher usage limits or more advanced capabilities.
ChatGPT: Your everyday AI assistant
ChatGPT can help with a wide range of everyday tasks, making it one of the most versatile AI tools available.
You can use it to draft emails, create shopping lists, plan meals, organise holidays, brainstorm ideas or explain complex topics in a simpler way. It can also help you prepare for conversations, create checklists and get started on tasks when you’re not sure where to begin.
For business owners, it can assist with tasks like drafting content, creating templates or generating ideas, helping save time on some of the more repetitive parts of the day.
Claude: A helping hand for writing and ideas
Claude is another AI assistant that is particularly useful for working with information and written content.
It can help summarise lengthy documents, improve the wording of emails, turn rough notes into structured content and help organise ideas. It is also useful for reviewing information and asking questions about documents you provide.
Whether you’re preparing a report, planning a project or simply trying to make sense of a large amount of information, Claude can help make the process quicker and easier.
Canva Magic Design: Create designs in less time
Creating professional-looking designs no longer requires advanced design skills. Canva Magic Design uses AI to help create presentations, invitations, social media graphics and other visual content quickly and easily.
You can use it to generate design ideas, create templates from a simple prompt, resize graphics, remove backgrounds from images and make edits that would traditionally take much longer.
It can be a handy tool for small business owners, community groups or anyone wanting to create polished content without spending hours designing.
Microsoft Copilot: Make everyday work tasks easier
If you use Microsoft 365, Copilot can help save time on many of the tasks you already do every day.
Integrated with tools like Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams, Copilot can help draft emails, summarise meetings, create documents, analyse information and turn ideas into presentations.
For example, after a long meeting, Copilot can help create a summary of key points and action items. It can also assist with reviewing documents, finding information in files and making sense of data in spreadsheets.
For business owners and busy professionals, Copilot can help reduce time spent on repetitive administrative tasks and allow more time to focus on higher-value work.
Otter.ai: Never miss the important details
Meetings are an important part of many people’s working day, but keeping track of everything discussed can be challenging. Otter.ai helps take the pressure off by automatically recording conversations, creating transcripts and summarising key points.
Instead of spending time writing notes during a meeting, you can stay focused on the discussion while Otter captures the important details. It can also help identify action items and make it easier to revisit conversations later.
For business owners and busy professionals, tools like Otter.ai can help save time on administration and make it easier to keep everyone on the same page.
Use AI as a tool, not a replacement
AI can be a great way to save time and improve productivity, but it still requires human judgement. Always review AI-generated information for accuracy, particularly when dealing with important business, financial or personal decisions.
Used well, AI can take care of some of the time-consuming tasks, giving you more time to focus on the things that matter most.
