Lesson 2 of 7 · AI for Everyone: Use AI Confidently at Work
Choosing and Setting Up Your First AI Assistant
Compare ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Copilot, pick one, and set it up properly in five minutes.
There are many AI assistants, and new ones appear every month. The good news: the skills you learn in this course work in all of them. So do not spend days comparing. Pick one, learn it well, and try others later.
The four you will hear about most
| Assistant | Made by | Works especially well if you… |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | OpenAI | Want the most widely used general assistant, with lots of tutorials online |
| Gemini | Use Gmail, Google Docs, Sheets and Drive | |
| Microsoft Copilot | Microsoft | Use Windows, Outlook, Word and Excel (Microsoft 365) |
| Claude | Anthropic | Work with long documents and want careful, well-structured writing |
All four have a free plan. Paid plans give you more usage and extra features. Prices and limits change often, so check the official website before you pay for anything.
Which one should you start with?
- Your company already provides one? Use that. It is usually set up with the right privacy settings for work, and your IT team has approved it.
- Your office runs on Microsoft 365? Start with Copilot.
- Your office runs on Google Workspace? Start with Gemini.
- Just for yourself? Any of the four is fine. Choose the one whose app you like using.
Tip: Before using AI for office work, ask your manager or IT team whether there is a company policy on AI tools. Many companies allow some tools and block others.
Set it up in five minutes
- Create an account on the official website or the official app from the Play Store or App Store. Avoid look-alike apps with similar names.
- Install the mobile app as well. Many quick tasks, like drafting a reply or translating a message, are easier on the phone, and you can talk instead of type.
- Find the privacy or data settings. Most assistants have a setting that controls whether your chats may be used to improve their models. Read what it says and choose what you are comfortable with. The name of the setting is different in each app, so look under Settings → Privacy or Data.
- Check the language. You can write in English, Hindi or Hinglish. Try one message in each and see which answers you prefer.
A quick tour of the screen
Every assistant looks a little different, but you will find the same parts:
- New chat: start fresh for each new topic. Mixing topics in one chat confuses the assistant.
- Chat history: your old conversations, so you can continue later.
- Attach (📎 or +): upload a file, photo or screenshot and ask questions about it.
- Microphone: speak your question instead of typing.
- Model or mode picker (in some apps): lets you choose a faster or a more capable mode. The default is fine to start with.
Practice task
Set up your assistant, then start a new chat and send these three messages, one after the other:
Hello! In 3 lines, tell me what you are and what you can help me with.
Ab yahi baat Hindi mein batao, simple shabdon mein.
Give me 5 ideas for how a [your job title] can save 30 minutes a day using you.
Notice how the assistant keeps the context of the conversation: you did not have to repeat yourself in the second message.
Key takeaways
- The skills in this course work with every AI assistant, so pick one and start.
- Use the tool your company provides or approves, if there is one.
- Install from official sources only, and check the privacy settings before you begin.
- Start a new chat for each new topic, and remember you can type in Hindi or Hinglish.
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