Before you read: AI tools change almost every week. Features get renamed, merged or retired, often with little notice. Check the published date on this page before you rely on it, and if you need training or materials that reflect what the tools look like today, get in touch with Softwired.
The short answer
Most AI tools now offer the same 12 building blocks under different names: chats, memory, custom instructions, projects, artefacts (documents and apps the AI makes for you), custom assistants and skills, agents that carry out multi-step work, deep research, connectors to your other apps, file uploads, image, voice and video, and a model picker with "thinking" options. Learn a concept once and you can find it in each of the major tools. The table below shows what each tool calls it, and marks the names we could not confirm.
What each tool calls it
This guide covers 6 tools: ChatGPT from OpenAI, Claude from Anthropic, Gemini from Google, Copilot from Microsoft, Grok from xAI and Meta AI from Meta. We checked every name against official vendor pages on 31 October 2026. "Not confirmed" means we could not find the feature or its name on an official page.
| Concept | ChatGPT | Claude | Gemini | Microsoft Copilot (work) | Grok | Meta AI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A conversation | Chat | Conversation | Chat | Chat (Copilot Chat) | Chat | Chat |
| Remembering you | Memory (saved memories and chat history) | Memory | Memory, part of Personal Intelligence | Saved memories and chat history personalisation | Memory across chats | Memory |
| A chat that isn't saved or remembered | Temporary Chat | Incognito chat | Temporary Chat | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Incognito chat |
| Standing instructions | Custom instructions | Instructions for Claude | Instructions for Gemini | Custom instructions | Custom instructions | Not confirmed |
| Grouped chats, files and instructions | Projects | Projects | Notebooks (Gemini Notebook, formerly NotebookLM) | Copilot Notebooks | Projects (details not confirmed) | Not confirmed |
| Documents and apps made alongside the chat | Writing blocks, and Pages in Space (canvas is now legacy) | Artifacts, including Claude Design, Slides and Docs (beta) | Canvas | Copilot Pages | Canvas for writing | Not confirmed |
| Reusable custom assistant | Custom GPTs (retiring 11 December 2026), moving to plugins and skills | Skills and plugins | Gems, read-only for personal accounts from 17 November 2026, moving to skills | Agents (built in Copilot Chat or Copilot Studio) | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Agent that does multi-step work | Work (replaced agent mode) | Cowork, now part of every conversation for many accounts | Task (formerly Spark) | Copilot Cowork, plus agents like Researcher and Analyst | Multi-agent mode; Grok Bot is a separate product | Handles tasks on your behalf (select markets; Australian availability not confirmed) |
| Long, cited research report | Deep research | Research | Deep Research | Researcher agent | Not confirmed | Research feature (name not confirmed) |
| Connecting other apps | Apps and plugins | Connectors | Connected Apps | Copilot connectors | Connectors | Email and calendar connections (select markets) |
| Bring-your-own connection (MCP) | MCP servers inside plugins | Custom connectors (remote MCP) | Custom connected apps (linked via MCP server) | Custom MCP connectors (admins) | Custom MCP connectors | Not confirmed |
| Images | Image generation (Images) | Visuals and Claude Design (beta) | Nano Banana | Image creation | Grok Imagine | Muse Image |
| Video | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Gemini Omni video | Not confirmed | Grok Imagine video | Video generation with Muse models |
| Voice | ChatGPT Voice | Not confirmed | Gemini Live | Voice with Copilot Vision | Voice | Voice |
The core concepts, one by one
Chats and threads
A chat (or conversation, or thread) is one back-and-forth with the AI. The AI keeps everything you type in that chat in view while it answers. Start a new chat for a new topic, because old, unrelated material in a long chat can drag answers off course.
How you'd actually use it
Give each task its own chat. "Draft the October newsletter" is one chat, and "Plan the staff Christmas party" is another.
Memory
Memory lets the tool carry details across chats, such as your role, your business or your preference for short answers. Some tools save specific facts you ask them to remember, and others also draw on your past chats. In most tools you can view and delete what's remembered, or switch memory off.
How you'd actually use it
Tell the tool once: "Remember that I run a physio clinic in Toowoomba with 6 staff." Future answers about rosters or marketing will start from that context. Read more in AI memory and custom instructions explained.
Custom instructions and personalisation
Custom instructions are standing rules the tool applies to every chat, such as "Use Australian English" or "Give me a one-paragraph summary first". ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot and Grok all keep them in Settings.
How you'd actually use it
Add "Write in Australian English, avoid jargon and keep emails under 150 words" so you stop correcting the same things.
Temporary or incognito chats
A temporary or incognito chat is a one-off conversation that doesn't use or build memory and, depending on the tool, stays out of your history. Use one for a sensitive personal question or a quick test.
Projects, workspaces and notebooks
A project groups related chats, files and instructions so the AI works from the same background every time. ChatGPT and Claude call it a project, Gemini's closest match is a notebook, and Microsoft 365 Copilot has Copilot Notebooks. Watch the word "workspace": in ChatGPT, Grok and other business plans it usually means your organisation's account.
How you'd actually use it
Create a "Tender responses" project, upload your capability statement and past answers, and add the instruction "Answer in our house style and flag any claim we can't evidence." Every new tender chat then starts with that material and that rule. More in What is a project?
Artefacts, canvases and pages
When you ask for something you'll keep and edit, such as a report, a slide deck, a chart or a small interactive tool, many AI tools now open it in its own panel or page instead of burying it in the chat. Claude calls these Artifacts, Gemini uses Canvas and Microsoft uses Copilot Pages. ChatGPT now uses writing blocks inside the chat, plus Pages in a feature called Space for longer, shared documents.
How you'd actually use it
Ask "Turn these meeting notes into a one-page project brief I can edit," then refine it in the side panel and export or share it. More in What are artefacts, canvases and pages?
Custom assistants, skills and plugins
A custom assistant is a reusable set of instructions and reference files for a repeated job, such as "Quote writer" or "Policy checker". The older names were custom GPTs (ChatGPT) and Gems (Gemini). ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini are all moving to skills: packaged instructions, examples and files that the AI picks up automatically when a task matches. Plugins bundle skills with app connections.
Three dates matter here. Gems become read-only for personal Google accounts on 17 November 2026 and are removed on 17 December 2026. Custom GPTs are scheduled to retire on 11 December 2026. More in Custom GPTs, Gems, skills and plugins explained.
Agents and agent modes
A chat answers you. An agent carries out a multi-step job, such as searching, reading files or creating documents, and checks back with you when it needs approval. ChatGPT calls this Work, and Claude calls it Cowork, which is now built into normal conversations for many accounts. Gemini calls it Task. Microsoft 365 Copilot has Copilot Cowork and specialist agents like Researcher.
How you'd actually use it
"Go through the last month of customer enquiries in my inbox, group them by topic and draft a FAQ page." Then review the draft before anything is sent or published. More in What is an AI agent?
Deep research
A deep research mode takes a question, makes a research plan, searches many sources over several minutes and returns a structured report with citations. It runs slower than a normal chat because it reads and cites far more sources. ChatGPT calls it Deep research, Claude calls it Research, Gemini calls it Deep Research and Microsoft 365 Copilot has the Researcher agent.
How you'd actually use it
"Compare the main workplace health and safety obligations for a small Queensland construction business using official sources. Give me a table and links." Then click through the sources. More in What is deep research?
Connectors, apps and MCP
Connectors let the AI read from, and sometimes act in, your other tools: email, calendar, Google Drive, SharePoint, Slack or your CRM. MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open standard that lets a business connect its own systems to AI tools. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot and Grok all support it in some form.
How you'd actually use it
Connect your Google Drive, then ask "Find last quarter's board pack and summarise what changed in this quarter's draft." More in AI connectors, apps and MCP explained.
File uploads and knowledge
You can attach PDFs, spreadsheets, documents, images and often audio to a chat, or store them in a project as "knowledge" the AI refers to every time. Upload limits vary by tool and plan.
How you'd actually use it
Upload your price list and terms as a spreadsheet and ask "Which 3 products have the lowest margin, and what would a 5% increase do?"
Image, voice and video
Most tools can now create and edit images, hold a spoken conversation, and in some cases see through your camera or screen. Some also generate short videos. Each vendor gives these features its own brand name, so we cover them in each product guide.
How you'd actually use it
Use voice mode on the drive to Brisbane to talk through tomorrow's presentation, then ask it to turn the conversation into a dot-point outline.
Models, model pickers and thinking modes
Behind each tool sits one or more AI models. The model picker lets you choose between faster models and stronger ones, and "thinking" or "reasoning" settings let the model take more time on hard problems. Switch to a stronger model or a thinking setting when the task involves several steps of logic, such as a budget comparison or a contract summary.
Context windows and tokens
The context window is how much text the AI can keep in view at once, measured in tokens (small chunks of words). In very long chats or with huge files, the tool may drop or summarise older material. When answers start ignoring earlier details, start a fresh chat or move the work into a project. More in AI models, thinking modes and context windows explained.
Plans, tiers, admin and data controls
Most tools offer free and paid personal plans, and the work-focused tools add business plans with admin controls. The plans differ in usage limits, in which features you get and in how your data is handled. On business and enterprise plans, the vendors we checked state that your content isn't used to train their models by default. On a personal plan, check the data or privacy settings yourself. If you use AI for work, use the account your organisation has approved.
Hallucinations and checking outputs
AI tools can sound confident and still be wrong. They can invent sources, mix up numbers or misread a file. Treat every output as a first draft from a fast, keen junior: useful, but checked before it goes anywhere. More in Why AI gets things wrong and how to check its work.
Which features should a beginner learn first?
Start with 4: custom instructions, projects, file uploads and checking outputs. Custom instructions cut the corrections you repeat, projects and uploads ground answers in your own files, and checking catches errors before they leave your desk. Add deep research when you need well-sourced answers, and agents once you're comfortable reviewing the AI's work.
Product guides
- ChatGPT features explained
- Claude features explained
- Gemini features explained
- Microsoft Copilot explained
- Grok features explained
- Meta AI explained
Frequently asked questions
Is Claude's Cowork the same as ChatGPT's agent?
They're the same idea. Both hand a multi-step job to the AI and let it work through the steps. ChatGPT's version is now called Work (it replaced agent mode), and Gemini's version is called Task.
Is a Gemini notebook the same as a ChatGPT project?
They do a similar job. Both keep sources and instructions together for related chats. Notebooks in Gemini sync with Google's Gemini Notebook app, which was formerly called NotebookLM.
Do I need a paid plan?
You can learn the basics on a free plan. Free plans cover chats and uploads, and often projects. Agents, deep research and higher limits usually need a paid or business plan.
Is it safe to put work information into AI tools?
It can be, if you use the account your organisation approves and check its data settings first. On a personal account, don't paste anything you wouldn't put in an email to a supplier.
Put it to work with AI On Ramp
The features in this guide pay off once your team uses them on its own work.
AI On Ramp gets your team using AI with confidence, on their own work and across teams, while you keep its cost and risk under control. We set up the tools, then our consultants sit beside your most advanced AI users and build real in-house workflows with them. Your nominated AI Lead gets the governance tools and our ongoing support to keep the business current as the tools change. We bring deep technical expertise and decades of business change management, and we work face to face from Brisbane and along Australia's east coast. See how AI On Ramp works.
Want to talk through how this applies to your team? Book a call with Softwired.
