The most widely used general-purpose AI assistant, from drafting to data work to coding.
Use with careConfident wording can hide weak sources: ask for citations and open them.
The AI tool landscape
Choose the tool that serves the work, not the spectacle.
There is no universal “best” AI assistant. The right choice depends on the workflow, the information boundary, the review standard and the person who stays accountable for the result.
A decision before a subscription
Five checks keep everyday use useful.
Run any tool through these five questions with the people who will use it. The answers matter more than the logo on the box.
- 01Purpose
Name the repeated task and the outcome that should improve.
- 02Information
Confirm what may enter the tool and what must remain protected.
- 03Review
Make the human check visible before output reaches a customer or a decision.
- 04Integration
Prefer tools that fit the approved systems and habits of the team.
- 05Evidence
Measure quality, time, exceptions, adoption and the business result.
26 AI tools, grouped by the work they suit.
Descriptions are Halden’s independent view of typical use. Capabilities, plans and terms change often, so confirm details with the provider.
A careful, long-context assistant favoured for writing, analysis and agentic coding.
Use with careConnectors expand what it can see: review permissions like any new integration.
Google's multimodal assistant, strongest where your work already lives in Google Workspace.
Use with careFeatures differ by plan and region; check what your organization has actually enabled.
The assistant built into Microsoft 365, Windows and Teams for everyday office work.
Use with careOversharing in SharePoint becomes visible quickly: audit access before rollout.
A fast reasoning assistant with live access to conversations on X.
Use with careSocial posts are not evidence: treat them as leads.
Meta's assistant across WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook, and the home of the Llama models.
Use with careConsumer apps have different data terms from business products.
A long-context assistant from Moonshot AI, popular for reading and summarising big documents.
Use with careHosting location and terms matter for sensitive data.
A Chinese lab known for strong reasoning and coding models at low prices, with open weights.
Use with careHosted use sends data to the provider: review residency and policy first.
A European assistant and model family with a strong open-weight and sovereignty story.
Use with careModel lineup changes quickly: confirm current names and licences.
Alibaba's broad model family, popular for multilingual work and open-weight releases.
Use with careLicences differ between models.
Z.ai's open-weight GLM models, focused on long-horizon coding and agents.
Use with careBenchmark gains are mostly company-reported.
A multimodal lab spanning text, speech, music and video models.
Use with careNames and previews change quickly.
Enterprise-focused language models built for search, retrieval and private deployment.
Use with careRequires more setup than a consumer assistant.
The hub where the open AI community shares models, datasets and demos.
Use with careQuality and licences vary across community uploads.
The simplest way to run open models on your own computer or server.
Use with careLocal models are usually weaker than the best hosted ones.
An answer engine that searches the web and cites its sources.
Use with careCitations can be weak or misread: always open them.
One place to chat with many AI models and bots side by side.
Use with careEach model carries its own terms.
A general AI agent that plans and carries out multi-step tasks on your behalf.
Use with careAutonomous steps can go wrong without notice: supervise.
The AI pair programmer built into editors, the command line and GitHub itself.
Use with careGenerated code can contain bugs or licence issues: review it.
An AI-first code editor built around agents that change your project for you.
Use with careFast agents can make large changes quickly: keep review discipline.
A leading image generator prized for striking, artistic results.
Use with careRights and disclosure expectations vary.
The company behind Stable Diffusion, with open image, audio and video models.
Use with careLicences differ by model.
AI video generation and editing tools for filmmakers and creative teams.
Use with careRights, likeness and disclosure need policies.
Realistic text-to-speech, voice agents and transcription in many languages.
Use with careVoice cloning requires consent and safeguards.
Generate full songs with vocals from a short description.
Use with careRights and attribution rules are evolving.
AI agents and answers that work across your team's own workspace.
Use with careIt can only be as good as your workspace content.
No tools in this group.
Names and logos identify third-party products only. Halden & Company is independent and is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by the organizations shown. Marks remain the property of their owners.
A better question
What work would become clearer and more accountable with the right assistance?
Use the guide as a starting point, then test the real workflow with its owner, users and information boundary.