Best AI Chatbots in 2023

With the rise of generative AI and Large Language Models (LLM’s) since the end of 2022, Chatbots and other AI-powered applications have changed a lot in how we acquire and use information. Some view them as all-knowing oracles, others as looming threats, but everyone agrees that the new generation of AI Chatbots are extremely powerful tools. Trained on a vast amount of data and designed to mimic human conversation, Chatbots provide a variety of different use cases for businesses and individuals alike. With this new wave hundreds of AI chatbots have launched in the last 6 months. Some are applicable to more or less everyone, others are specialized to do certain tasks. In this article we select our picks for the best AI chatbots in 2023.

How we test and review AI chatbots

Widely popular chatbots such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT is just the tip of the iceberg. In reality there are hundreds of AI chatbots on the web, often made to fulfill a specific task or purpose. So how do we decide on the best? To determine the best AI chatbot in 2023, we tested the tools, by giving them prompts specific to their strength and compared the outputs. Following the same idea, we compare them on broader parameters, while still accounting for the speciality of the AI chatbots. We consider factors such as the following to shape an overarching review of the AI Chatbots.

• Price: We look into the value-for-money aspect of the reviewed tools and compare them to tools of similar capabilities. If the chatbot is free, but requires other applications or infrastructure to function, we consider this part of the “price”.
• Usability: An important criteria in our reviews are the ease of use; how easy it is to get started and set up the tool, the UX of interface and lastly the if there’s a multipurpose functionality
• General performance: We take into consideration the processing speed; how does it take for the AI chatbot to produce a (valid) response and of course the accuracy of the response itself.

In other words, there should be plenty of options, no matter how you intend to use the AI chatbot.

1. Best overall AI Chatbot: ChatGPT-4

• Ranking: 9.5/10

• Price: $20/month

• Performance: Excellent – very fast responses even with larger tasks

• Usability: Very easy

Maybe this won’t come as a surprise for a lot of people. OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 is like nothing we’ve ever seen. Extremely capable in a variety of different fields, such as generating functional code (in practically every programming language), the newest generation of the LLM is a must-have tool for everyone trying to enhance their productivity. Due to ChatGPT-4’s  multifunctionality it was surprisingly hard to define an area that the tool would be particularly proficient in. ChatGPT-4 costs $20 dollars per month, which is, in our opinion, a super fair price for the incredible features and performance it delivers; the $20 is quickly made up for through enhanced productivity.

ChatGPT was especially revolutionary due to its understanding of context when given multiple prompts. This is unique in two ways: First, it really enhances the sensation of having a conversation with the chatbot, as you don’t have to outline information that was mentioned in a previous prompt. In other words, not only does it make the responses from ChatGPT so much better, but also makes the prompting itself like having a relatively fluid conversation. Secondly, this feature enables what has basically come to be known as “prompt engineering”. Prompt engineering essentially means that you engineer the chatbot through a series of prompts to make it behave in a certain way or to fulfill certain tasks. ChatGPT-4 is extremely powerful, when carefully prompted. 

If you don’t know how to get started, check out some recommended prompts or even just ask the chatbot about its capabilities. 

Prompt test 

The AI chatbot is renowned for being excellent in STEM fields and having great conversational functionality. So in our testing process, we tried a variety of different prompts to evaluate this. 

First, we tried giving ChatGPT-4 quite a simple question about the planning of a birthday party:

The response was expectedly good. ChatGPT responded in a structured and easily understandable manner, even providing details and explanations to each of its recommendations. 

Second, we wanted to test its capabilities in programmering by asking it to write a Python code for a simple snake game.

Highlighted features: 

• Multimodal Capabilities: It can handle text, images, and potentially video inputs. This capability enables it to process and discuss both text and image inputs, and possibly handle video inputs in the future.
• Website Generation from Images: It can create functional websites from hand-drawn sketches, demonstrating an advanced ability to understand and transform visual data into code.
• Enhanced Language Accuracy: It provides more accurate and concise responses, and exhibits human-level performance on various benchmarks.
• Increased Processing Capability: It can process up to 8 times more words than its predecessor, capable of processing up to 25,000 words.

Pros

• Excellent at writing
• Excellent understanding of context
• Good at programming and problem solving
• Conversational
• Available on mobile app

Cons:

• Doesn’t have access to the most recent data nor the internet
• Some occasional downtime
• 25 messages per day limit

2. Best AI Chatbot for students: Socratic

• Ranking: 7/10

• Price: $10/month
• Performance: Good
• Usability: Super easy

Socratic, an exceptional AI tool designed for educational purposes, revolutionizes the way students learn. With its user-friendly interface and remarkable performance, Socratic has become a go-to resource for learners of all ages. This powerful tool combines advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to provide accurate and detailed explanations for academic queries. Students can simply snap a photo of a problem or type a question, and Socratic will deliver step-by-step solutions, explanations, and relevant resources. Powered by Google, the AI chatbot is incredibly fast and precise in its responses. 

Utilizing Socratic is incredibly straightforward: whether you’re grappling with a math problem or seeking clarification on a historical event, you can effortlessly snap a photo of the question or type it out. Socratic’s intelligent algorithm then analyzes the input and provides you with a step-by-step breakdown of the solution, along with comprehensive explanations to ensure your understanding.

What sets Socratic apart and earns it a spot on the list of top AI chatbots is its exceptional performance in delivering accurate and insightful responses. The tool showcases expertise by consistently providing detailed explanations that cater to different learning styles. Its extensive coverage across various subjects and the inclusion of a vast resource library ensure that users have access to a wealth of supplementary materials, fostering a deeper understanding of the topic at hand

Highlighted features:

• Image-based problem-solving: Snap a photo of a problem, and Socratic delivers detailed explanations and solutions.
• Subject diversity: Covers a wide range of subjects, including math, science, history, and literature.
• Step-by-step explanations: Provides in-depth, easy-to-understand explanations for complex concepts.
• Resource library: Offers relevant resources like videos, articles, and practice questions to enhance learning.
• Smart algorithm: Utilizes AI and machine learning algorithms to continuously improve accuracy and provide personalized assistance.

Pros:

• Intuitive interface makes it easy for users to interact with the chatbot
• Impressive accuracy in providing comprehensive answers and explanations
• Vast range of subjects covered, from math and science to history and literature

Cons: 

• Limited availability of the tool on certain platforms
• Only available as an app
• In-app advertisements can be distracting for some users

3. Most creative AI Chatbot: Personal AI

• Ranking: 8/10

• Price: $40/month
• Performance: Good – really accelerate over time
• Usability: Easy – however, it will require some technical skills to use it to the full extent

Personal AI, an AI tool specialized in chatbot technology, has emerged as a formidable addition to the market. This tool, unlike many chatbots, excels in adapting to your unique communication style, making interactions feel more organic and less robotic. The customization potential is impressive – it makes the chatbot feel truly personal. In terms of usability, Personal AI provides an intuitive and user-friendly experience. Its performance, backed by robust machine learning capabilities, remains consistently high, whether it’s learning from interactions or providing helpful responses.  Personal AI functions as a copilot or assistant that will give you suggestions on what to answer or respond in a chat. You can even put it on autopilot to stay in the conversation, even if you’re in a completely different timezone. The more you use the AI chatbot, the better it will become – as it will “stack” your memory from previous conversations. 

Personal AI describes their chatbot as: 

“Your personal AI is the digital library of you—a treasure trove of your life’s information. Whether it’s future dinner plans with friends or work meeting recaps, everything is indexed automatically and is entirely discoverable—simply by chatting”

However, the pricing, which some users may find steep, could be a deterrent. Luckily, Personal AI offers a free subscription, so you can try out the awesome chatbot.  Despite this, the overall value provided by Personal AI is undeniable, considering its features and functionality. All in all, the level of customization and adaptability offered by Personal AI differentiates it from many other AI chatbots on the market today, making it a tool worth considering for your needs.

Highlighted features:

• Adaptable communication style
• Robust machine learning capabilities
• High level of personalization
• User-friendly interface
• API access (only for paid plan)

Pros:

• Organic and personalized interaction
• Consistently high performance
• Easy to use and navigate

Cons:

• Some users may find it pricey
• Its responses may sometimes seem less human-like
• Requires some time for the AI to adapt to the user’s style

 4. Best AI Chatbot for search engines: Bing Chat

• Ranking: 8.5/10

• Price: Free
• Performance: Great
• Usability: Easy 

Bing Chat’s top feature is its versatility. It extends far beyond conventional chat functionality, offering users the ability to generate diverse content such as poems, songs, stories, and reports. Furthermore, Bing Chat provides valuable insights about the currently open website, enhancing the user’s browsing experience. This tool also exhibits an impressive creative side with its image creator, letting users design a variety of visuals based on text.

Ease of access is another feature that stands out. Bing Chat can be used across different platforms including Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS, making it accessible for virtually everyone. Finally, Bing Chat boasts a tailored version of GPT-4 for search, contributing to an enhanced user experience.

Despite these strengths, a few areas could use improvement. Bing Chat is still in development, and while it shares many similarities with ChatGPT, it falls short in areas like language fluency and coherence. Additionally, accessing Bing Chat requires signing into a Microsoft account which may be seen as a hurdle by some users. Finally, for users less tech-savvy, navigating through Bing Chat’s multiple features could be overwhelming.

Pros of Bing Chat include its multi-functionality, broad accessibility, and creative prowess, along with the high-performance of its search function. On the flip side, language coherence needs improvement, mandatory Microsoft account sign-in can be inconvenient, and the myriad of features could be confusing for beginners.

Microsoft’s Bing Chat, though not without its flaws, provides an impressively versatile and accessible AI chatbot tool, exhibiting the potential to revolutionize the way we interact with technology and manage digital tasks. With improvements, it could soon outpace other AI tools in its category.

Highlighted features:

• Human-like Responses: Bing Chat, powered by the GPT-4 model, delivers human-like responses that make the interaction with it more engaging and natural.
• Multi-language Support: Bing Chat supports multiple languages, making it accessible to a global audience.
• Tailored Conversations: The chatbot offers three distinct response styles: creative, balanced, and precise, which can be switched at the user’s discretion.
• Search Engine Integration: Bing Chat is seamlessly integrated with the Bing search engine, making information seeking efficient and hassle-free.
• Summarization Capabilities: Bing Chat can analyze and summarize information, reducing the time users spend reading and understanding content.

Pros:

• Seamless Interaction: Bing Chat’s integration into the Microsoft Edge sidebar provides a convenient side-by-side view for complex questions and detailed answers, eliminating the need to switch tabs 
• Personalization of Responses: The latest update’s tone toggle feature allows users to choose the tone of the chatbot’s responses, enhancing user experience
• Cited References: Bing Chat includes cited references in its responses, increasing the reliability of the information provided.

Cons:

• Limited Sessions: Bing Chat limits the number of chat sessions per day, which might be insufficient for heavy users
• Less Creative Responses: Bing Chat falls short of ChatGPT in providing creative and lengthy responses.

5. Best new AI Chatbot: Bard

• Ranking: 9/10

• Price: Free
• Performance: Great
• Usability: Easy 

Google’s Bard, as a late entrant in the realm of AI chatbots, has certainly created ripples across the tech community. In my personal interaction with the tool, the Bard presents itself as an intriguing blend of strengths and challenges that paint a picture of promising potential coupled with room for growth. 

The first thing that stands out when you interact with Bard is its user interface. The design philosophy revolves around a clean, bright aesthetic, a stark contrast to the dark-themed layouts many of us have become accustomed to with other chatbots. But it’s not just the appearance; it’s intuitive and welcoming, cutting across the technical proficiency spectrum, which is a testament to Google’s experience in creating user-friendly interfaces. 

Performance-wise, Bard’s swiftness is commendable. With a rapid response time, the interactions flow seamlessly, much like conversing with a fellow human. Additionally, Bard proves to be competent at generating coherent, thoughtful responses even when provided with abstract or complex prompts, demonstrating a substantial level of conversational intelligence.

Highlighted Features:

• User-friendly Interface: Bard’s interface is highly intuitive and welcoming for users of different technical abilities, marking a positive user experience.
• Draft Previewing: Bard provides a unique feature where users can view different drafts considered by the chatbot, offering a glimpse into the AI’s thinking process.
• Quick Response Time: Bard impresses with its fast response time, creating a seamless interaction for users.
• Cohesive Responses: Even when faced with ambiguous or non-standard prompts, Bard is capable of generating meaningful and understandable responses.

Pros:

• User-friendly Interface: Bard boasts a clean, engaging user interface that’s welcoming to beginners and tech experts alike.
• Quick Response Time: The AI chatbot is commendably fast, creating a smooth, uninterrupted user experience.
• Coherent Replies: Even in the face of ambiguous or abstract prompts, Bard manages to generate meaningful responses.
• Candidness about Limitations: Bard acknowledges its own imperfections and the limitations of AI technology, which I find to be a refreshing approach.

Cons:

• Accuracy: Bard’s responses sometimes include incorrect details and inaccuracies, highlighting a developmental stage.
• Source Clarity: Bard’s responses often lack clarity in terms of sources, which could negatively impact its reliability.
• Learning Capability: Compared to some of its competitors, Bard’s ability to learn from user interactions seems to be lagging behind.

4 things to consider before deciding on an AI chatbot

Choosing the right AI Chatbot to suit your needs can be a complex decision, given the broad array of options and capabilities that exist in the market. Here are four key considerations to keep in mind before deciding on a particular AI Chatbot:

Business Objectives and Needs

 The first step in selecting an AI chatbot involves identifying the specific business needs, potential clientele, and the intended objectives you want to achieve with the chatbot. Understanding your customer’s journey and their pain points can provide clarity on the features and capabilities your AI chatbot should possess. The selection should ideally be influenced by the business area that will be automated and the type of customer inquiries that will be handled.

Chatbot Capabilities 

The AI chatbot’s ability to understand and interpret user sentiments, context in multiple languages, and personalize customer experiences based on data is a vital consideration. A chatbot’s effectiveness is not just measured by its ability to answer queries, but also its capacity to learn and improve over time through user interactions and feedback. In addition, analytics features for assessing the effectiveness of the chatbot and gathering key metrics can also be critical for businesses.

Support and Integration 

An ideal AI chatbot should be capable of seamlessly communicating across various channels like text, Skype, phone, and email. This ensures a friction-free customer experience and a smooth handover to live agents when required. Moreover, it’s also important that the chatbot can be integrated with existing enterprise platforms like CRM, HRMS, and communication apps. This integration helps automate workflows and access relevant data for insights.

Cost and Vendor Experience 

The price of the chatbot, challenges related to its deployment, customization options, and ongoing maintenance requirements are essential financial considerations. Moreover, it is also important to evaluate the experience of the vendor in building customizable chatbot solutions. The vendor’s expertise, track record, and customer reviews can provide valuable insight into the chatbot’s long-term reliability and effectiveness.

In summary, choosing an AI Chatbot requires a comprehensive understanding of your business needs, a detailed evaluation of the chatbot’s capabilities, an assessment of the chatbot’s compatibility with existing systems and platforms, and a careful review of the cost and vendor’s industry experience.

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