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Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness AI Tipsheet

This guide highlights a selection of AI tools that have been explored or piloted by the Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness at Penn State to better understand how these technologies can support our day-to-day work.

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Updated:

November 13, 2025

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The information provided here is intended as a starting point to help staff make informed decisions. Use your best judgment and consider the specific context and goals of your task when considering which AI resource to use.

AI Tool Descriptions

ChatGPT

ChatGPT is a general-purpose AI chatbot developed by OpenAI and designed to engage in natural, human-like conversations. Its strengths include creativity, strong reasoning skills, and the ability to generate polished, plain-language content. It can assist you in drafting content, summarizing materials, answering questions, and brainstorming ideas. The tool retains context well across your sessions, which makes it effective for more extended tasks. At its base, ChatGPT does not use “real-time” data unless you specifically frame your prompts to include current information from the web.

Google Gemini

Gemini is Google’s general-purpose AI chatbot, and it is best used within the Google Workspace environment. It integrates tightly with Google Docs, Gmail, Sheets, and Drive, making it useful for summarizing collaborative files or drafting content within shared tools. Gemini's major strength is its real-time access to web data. However, it tends to produce high-level or generic responses and may lack the nuanced tone or tailored writing ChatGPT offers. It’s particularly effective for quick lookups or working inside the Google ecosystem.

Perplexity

Perplexity is a fact-focused AI research assistant designed for real-time question answering. It searches the web live and always includes citations, which makes it ideal for finding recent research, policy documents, .gov sources, or academic articles. Unlike more creative tools, Perplexity sticks closely to what it finds online, which makes it strong for accuracy and transparency but weaker for tasks requiring synthesis, interpretation, or formatting. It’s an excellent tool for researchers who need quick, citable answers.

Google Notebook LM

NotebookLM is an AI-powered notebook tool/research assistant that allows you to upload documents like PDFs, text files, or pasted content to use as sources for your prompts. NotebookLM allows you to summarize information, compare documents, identify trends, and answer questions about the sources you uploaded. This tool does not pull information from the internet, so it cannot assist in identifying new sources or research. It is very limited in its ability to be creative.

Microsoft Copilot

Copilot, Microsoft’s AI assistant, is built into the Microsoft 365 suite (e.g., Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, etc.). It’s designed to improve productivity by helping users write, analyze, summarize, and visualize content across Microsoft apps. The free tier includes basic chatbot and writing features, while the Pro version unlocks full integration—such as creating charts in Excel, summarizing Word documents, or drafting slide decks in PowerPoint. Copilot is especially helpful for streamlining repetitive tasks within documents and spreadsheets.

Comparing These Tools

This side-by-side comparison outlines five commonly used AI tools relevant to our work. While features often overlap, each tool has unique strengths that make it better suited for certain tasks. Performance may vary based on whether you're using a free or paid version, and some tools work best within specific ecosystems (e.g., Microsoft 365).

AI Tool Comparison Table
Tool	Best For	Key Strengths	Limitations	When to Use	Avoid If…
ChatGPT	Structured content creation (e.g., curricula, logic models, reports)	Excellent tone, format, and structure Roleplay, rewriting, translation Handles complex writing tasks	Can hallucinate sources Static knowledge unless web browsing is enabled (paid versions only)	Writing logic models Drafting grant narratives Translating research to plain language	You need real-time sources or citations
Gemini	Fast research and Google Docs support	Real-time web search and citations Integrated with Gmail/Docs/Drive Long context window	Writing may be brief or overly simplified-Weaker tone control	Summarizing Google Docs Finding recent DoD/family readiness info	You need structured output for reports
Perplexity	Quick fact-checking with sources	Pulls real sources & links-Great for literature scans or stats-Cited answers	Doesn’t write long content Limited document uploads	Finding supporting data Exploring unfamiliar domains	You need narrative writing or logic chains
NotebookLM	Answering questions about internal documents	Stays grounded in user-uploaded materials No hallucination Great for onboarding or SOP queries	No web access Limited creativity Only as good as what you upload	Retrieving Internal documents-Summarizing evaluation reports Onboarding new staff	You need novel ideas or external sources
Microsoft Copilot*	Automating work inside Office 365 apps	Integrated with Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams Summarizes meetings, visualizes data, drafts content	Requires enterprise subscription Limited outside Microsoft apps	Summarizing Teams calls Analyzing Excel program data Drafting reports in Word	You don’t use Microsoft 365 You are not paying for a subscription premium

* The free version of Copilot has significantly limited features.

Common Research Tasks and Tool Selection

This section highlights common tasks that Clearinghouse staff may be able to enhance by using AI tools. Each task is paired with recommended tools based on fit, strengths, and alignment with our mission. The goal is to help staff identify tools that can streamline workflows, support research and writing, and improve implementation or evaluation activities. While AI can boost efficiency and creativity, it should complement—not replace—expertise, critical thinking, or data-privacy standards. Tool capabilities often overlap so rely on your professional judgment when selecting the right fit.

Common Research Tasks and Tool Selection
Example Task	Recommended Tool	Benefits / Why it Fits
Draft a program logic model or curriculum (e.g., for a family resilience program)	ChatGPT	Strong narrative structure, plain-language clarity, and formatting options.
Write plain-language summaries of implementation evaluations for program partners	ChatGPT	Converts technical content into polished, accessible summaries.
Generate scenario-based learning examples or role-play scripts for training	ChatGPT	Creative generation of realistic training material based on input prompts.
Collect and cite recent academic studies or .gov sources on veteran well-being	Perplexity	Fast retrieval of relevant, source-cited literature and government publications.
Identify evidence-informed practices	Perplexity	Perplexity pulls in recent, cited resources from scholarly and agency websites.
Compare programs from past grant cycles using internal documentation	NotebookLM	Pulls accurate information from uploaded PDFs or internal evaluations.
Answer questions about internal SOPs, TA procedures, or implementation toolkits	NotebookLM	Ideal for grounded Q&A from trusted internal content.
Summarize key takeaways from collaborative project notes in the Google Ecosystem	Google Gemini	Built-in summarization for shared Drive content.
Summarize an email or draft an email	ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot	ChatGPT for better tone and structure; Gemini for contextual autofill in Google Workspace.
Turn post-site-visit notes into stakeholder briefings or action plans	Microsoft Copilot	Excellent inside Word and Teams for summarizing, formatting, or auto-generating outlines.
Create visual charts from outcome data stored in Excel or generate summary tables	Microsoft Copilot	Strong at Excel-based analysis, automating data visualizations.
Draft PowerPoint slides	Microsoft Copilot	Direct slide creation from written content in Word or OneNote.
Analyze and identify data patterns in Excel	Microsoft Copilot	Enables the ability to evaluate spreadsheet data, analyze data, create formulas and ask questions.

This tip sheet was prepared and provided by the Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness.

The Clearinghouse requires staff to exercise good judgment when utilizing AI tools in their project work. If you have questions about the appropriate, ethical, and judicial use of AI technologies, consult your project lead, program manager, or principal investigator.

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