Full reviewBuilt with
Poppy AI
A visual research workspace for connecting source material, reusable context, chatbots, and production workflows.
Excellent when context architecture matters. Too much tool for casual prompting.Read the profile →Category field guide
Research & AI assistants
The models and context systems I use to investigate, reason, draft, challenge, and carry approved work into execution.
- Tools covered
- 6
- Full reviews
- 3
- Field notes
- 3
My position
How I decide what belongs in this layer
I do not treat general-purpose AI tools as interchangeable chat boxes. Poppy, ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Studio occupy different positions in my workflow: persistent context, general execution, model cross-checking, research discovery, or prototype validation.
The useful comparison is not which model wins a generic benchmark. It is which surface preserves the right context, exposes the right evidence, and creates an output I can verify before it becomes code, content, or an automated action.
The working set
6 tools, with the evidence level visible.
A field-note label is not a downgrade or a placeholder. It is the honest boundary between useful experience and a completed repeatable review.
Full reviewDaily workflow
ChatGPT
The flexible reasoning and execution layer used to structure work, test ideas, write, research, and coordinate implementation.
The best generalist in the stack when the operator supplies context and a review standard.Read the profile →Full reviewBuilt with
Google AI Studio
A practical environment for testing Gemini behavior and moving model experiments toward Google-oriented applications.
Strong for rapid Gemini prototyping; the prototype still needs real application engineering around it.Read the profile →Field notesRegular workflow
Gemini
Google's general AI assistant in my cross-checking, research, multimodal, and Google-stack workflow.
A serious second reasoning surface, especially around Google workflows; I still verify the answer, not the brand.Read the profile →Field notesUsed, lower current frequency
Claude
A capable long-form reasoning and writing surface that has been part of my model comparison set, though not my current default.
Strong enough to deserve a place in the comparison set; current fit matters more than old loyalty to a model.Read the profile →Field notesResearch workflow
Perplexity Pro
A fast discovery and source-finding surface I use to map a question before reading the material that will support the conclusion.
Excellent for research orientation. Citations are starting points, not an excuse to skip the source.Read the profile →Selection rules
The rules I use before adding another tool.
A defensible conclusion and a reusable body of approved context—not merely a fluent answer.
- 01Choose the context boundary before the model.
- 02Separate discovery from authoritative evidence.
- 03Cross-check consequential conclusions.
- 04Keep an explicit human approval gate.