The AI map · Models and assistants

AI assistants

A chat app you talk to every day to answer questions, write, research, read files and, more and more, carry out tasks for you. The ones that lead it as of 29 October 2026.

  1. ChatGPT New since July

    OpenAI

    The default general assistant: chat, files, images, deep research, Codex and, on Pro, an always-on agent called a dot.

    Pick it You want the widest set of features in one app, from a free tier up to agents that keep working for you.

    Price Free; Go $8 a month (may show ads); Plus $20 a month; Pro from $100 a month in three tiers: Pro 100, Pro 200 and Pro 500 ($500, with Ultrafast)

    Source: chatgpt.com

  2. Claude New since July

    Anthropic

    A careful writer and work partner, strong on long documents, coding (Claude Code) and agent work in Chrome and Microsoft 365.

    Pick it Your work is long writing, analysis or code and you want clear, readable output over the most features.

    Price Free; Pro $20 a month ($17 a month billed yearly); Max from $100 a month

    Source: claude.com

  3. Gemini New since July

    Google

    Google's assistant, tied into Gmail, Docs, Drive and Android, now on Gemini 4 Argon for paid plans.

    Pick it You live in Google's apps, or want a cheap paid tier: Google AI Plus is $4.99 a month.

    Price Free; Google AI Plus $4.99 a month; Google AI Pro $19.99 a month; Google AI Ultra from $99.99 a month

    In India Google and Jio ran a free Google AI Pro offer for Jio users from October 2025; whether it still runs in 2026 is unconfirmed.

    Source: gemini.google

  4. Microsoft Copilot

    Microsoft

    Microsoft's assistant, free on the web and built into Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook with a Microsoft 365 plan.

    Pick it You already pay for Microsoft 365 and want the assistant inside the Office files you work in.

    Price Free; advanced features with Microsoft 365 Premium at $19.99 a month (US pricing)

    Source: microsoft.com

  5. Meta AI New since July

    Meta

    A free assistant inside WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook, running Muse Spark 1.1 in its Thinking mode since July 2026.

    Pick it You want an assistant in the apps you already message in, at no cost.

    Price Free

    Source: ai.meta.com

  6. Grok New since July

    xAI (the site now names the company SpaceX Super Intelligence, SpaceXSI)

    An assistant with live access to posts on X, plus Grok Bot agents and Grok Build for making apps.

    Pick it You want answers that draw on what people are posting on X right now.

    Price Free to try; SuperGrok for higher limits (price not stated on the page we read)

    Source: x.ai

  7. Perplexity

    Perplexity

    An answer engine that searches the web and cites its sources, and lets you pick between models from OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, Moonshot, Z.ai and xAI.

    Pick it You want sourced answers and the choice of several companies' models under one subscription.

    Price Free; Pro $17 a month billed yearly; Max $167 a month billed yearly

    Source: perplexity.ai

What changed

  1. Oct 2026 Google's paid Gemini plans moved to Gemini 4 Argon, which the subscriptions page lists for Google AI Plus, Pro and Ultra. gemini.google
  2. 28 to 29 Sep 2026 OpenAI reopened the $200 Pro plan with a lower usage allowance, added Pro 100 and Pro 500 ($500 a month, with Ultrafast), and grandfathered existing Pro 200 subscribers until 29 October 2026. help.openai.com
  3. 29 Sep 2026 At DevDay OpenAI launched dots (always-on agents on Pro and Business Premium), ChatGPT Space and Pages for teams, and Sign in with ChatGPT across 16 partner tools. openai.com
  4. 22 Sep 2026 Anthropic released Claude Opus 5.5 and raised five-hour usage limits on Pro, Max, Team and seat-based Enterprise plans. anthropic.com
  5. 3 Sep 2026 OpenAI released GPT-6 Astra to ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Business and Enterprise over the following days. x.com
  6. 11 Aug 2026 xAI launched Grok Bot, always-on agents with their own computer, later included with SuperGrok. x.ai
  7. 16 Jul 2026 xAI released Grok 4.5 and brought it to grok.com, X and the mobile apps on 22 July. x.ai
  8. 9 Jul 2026 Meta released Muse Spark 1.1 and made it the Thinking mode in the Meta AI app and on meta.ai. ai.meta.com

Questions people ask about it

AI as a Thinking Partner

  1. How do founders use AI for strategy, decisions, and brutal feedback?
  2. Why use AI as a board-meeting sparring partner, coach, or devil's advocate?
  3. How do solo founders use AI to cover their skill gaps?
  4. What does an 'AI-native startup' look like, teams staying tiny while scaling big?

Search & Research

  1. Why use AI (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, deep research modes) instead of Google?
  2. How do founders run 'deep research' to get report-quality answers?
  3. How do I fact-check AI answers and avoid hallucinations?
  4. Which AI research tool should I actually use: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, or Grok?
  5. How do I write research prompts that get consistently better answers?
  6. How do founders use AI for market research and market sizing (TAM/SAM/SOM)?

Building Your AI Stack

  1. ChatGPT vs Claude vs Gemini vs Grok, how do founders actually choose?
  2. Which paid AI subscriptions are worth it for an early-stage founder?
  3. How do I evaluate the endless stream of new AI tools without drowning?

Prompting

  1. Why do some people get 10x better results from the same AI tools?
  2. What are the 5 prompting techniques worth learning (and the ones that are outdated)?
  3. How do I give AI the right context about my business (projects, custom instructions, memory)?

Choosing Your AI Assistant

  1. I'm new to AI. Which assistant should I start with: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, Meta AI or another?
  2. Is the free version of ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini enough, or should I pay?
  3. What do these AI plans cost in India, and are the free Jio and Airtel offers still running?
  4. Should I use more than one AI assistant, and can I move what one knows about me to another?
  5. How do I choose between a fast model and a thinking model inside ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini?
  6. How do I get ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini to remember me, my work and how I like answers?

Learning with AI

  1. Which AI assistants have a study or learning mode, and how do I turn it on?
  2. How do I learn a new subject quickly with AI without fooling myself that I understand it?
  3. How do I use Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) to study from my own notes and PDFs?
  4. Can AI help me prepare for JEE Main, NEET or other exams?
  5. I'm a complete beginner. Can I learn to code with AI, and how should I use it?
  6. Does using ChatGPT make you worse at thinking? What does the research actually say?

Using AI Safely

  1. What should I never paste or type into ChatGPT, Gemini or any other AI chatbot?
  2. Are my AI chats private, and how do I stop ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot and Meta AI training on them?
  3. Is what I tell ChatGPT or Claude about my legal problem confidential, like talking to a lawyer?
  4. Someone on a video call says they are CBI or police and I am under 'digital arrest'. What do I do?
  5. A relative called crying and asked for money urgently. How do I know it is them and not an AI voice clone?
  6. How can I tell if a photo, video or voice note is AI-made, and what do the 'AI' labels mean?

The rest of the map

Checked 29 October 2026. Prices and rankings move every few months; each tool links the page its claims were read from.

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