When most of us think of AI, our minds jump straight to ChatGPT – or maybe Claude and Midjourney. Generative AI has dominated the headlines, with people using it to write essays, make artwork, and even code.
But AI isn’t just about cranking out text and images – or threatening to put human creators out of a job. Behind the scenes, developers have been building tools that tackle specific problems, from lightening the load at work to nudging us off our screens and back into the real world.
Here are eight that have caught our eye. Some are quirky, some practical, some delightfully absurd. But all of them are a reminder that AI is more than chatbot small talk.
1. Merlin Bird ID
Think Shazam, but for birds. Developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Merlin lets you point your phone at a bird or record its call, then serves up an ID almost instantly.
It’s powered by a vast library of photos and sounds, and it’s surprisingly accurate – not to mention addictive. More than just a neat trick, it’s a gentle nudge to notice the world around you and an excellent excuse to head out for a walk.
Goblin.Tools is a free suite of mini AI helper tools designed with neurodivergent people in mind, though anyone can benefit.
Magic ToDo breaks intimidating tasks into bite-sized steps; Judge helps you gauge the tone of an email; Chef suggests meals based on whatever you’ve got in the fridge. They’re all simple, clear, and genuinely useful. For more apps for neurodivergent people, take a look at our AI to help with ADHD guide.
3. OpusClip
Snappy video clips do well on social media, but editing long footage into bite-sized posts can be a slog. OpusClip automates this process, using built-in AI tools to find the most engaging sections of a video, resizing them for TikTok or Instagram, and even adding captions and emojis.
As you might expect, not every result is perfect, and you will have to go and check them before hitting “post”, but it’s often close. Whether you’re a content creator or running a social media account at work, it can save you a lot of time.
4. Rewind.ai
Okay, this one is a little strange. Rewind runs in the background of your Mac, recording your screen and audio so you can “rewind” to anything you’ve seen, said, or heard. Maybe you forgot where you saw a quote or want to revisit a Zoom call. Rewind makes your entire digital life searchable.
It’s powerful, if a little creepy, but for researchers or productivity geeks, it’s like having a photographic memory for your computer.
5. Be My AI
AI isn’t just about convenience; it can also open up the world. Be My Eyes, with its Be My AI feature, describes surroundings to blind or low-vision users in real time, whether that’s reading a street sign, identifying an object, or explaining what’s in a photo. It’s practical, empowering, and a powerful example of AI making life more accessible.
6. Character.AI
We’ve written about Character.AI several times before, like when we used it to create a motivational coach. But we wanted to mention it again, as it is a more unusual application of AI.
With it, you can chat with real or fictional characters – from Shakespeare to a dragon. You can create a chatbot persona for fun, learning, or even emotional support. It’s got a dedicated user base, though, as you might expect, results can be chaotic.
7. Gamma
If you need to make PowerPoint presentations for work, Gamma offers an easier way to do it. You type in a topic, and it generates polished slides with text and AI-made visuals. You can export to PowerPoint if you need to, but the in-app designs are usually better looking.
It’s not replacing human storytelling, and you will have to tweak the results, but it does get you from blank slide to partially finished deck quickly.
8. SciSpace Agent
If you need to do a lot of research for uni or work, SciSpace Agent acts like an AI-powered research assistant. You can ask it to summarize a paper, explain a concept, or even suggest relevant references. It’s built for students, academics, and anyone who’s ever felt the pain of slogging through 30-page studies.
Unlike chatbots, it’s tuned for scholarly work, which makes it more reliable when you need more than surface-level answers – though we do still recommend you fact-check results before you add them to your own work.
AI might be controversial right now, but it’s already spreading into every corner of our lives – often in ways that feel practical, playful, or quietly transformative.
From identifying birds to breaking down tasks, from inventing fictional characters to widening access, these tools suggest a future where AI isn’t dominated by a single chatbot, but shaped by thousands of small, clever applications we haven’t even imagined yet.
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