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Artificial intelligence for researchers

Provides an overview of artificial intelligence (AI) for academic staff and researchers.

AI and literature reviews

There are many new AI tools available to researchers and students which focus on academic sources (rather than general AI tools such as Copilot or ChatGPT). These tools offer a powerful new method of discovering academic literature and can be a great complement to traditional methods of searching the literature in your field.

Some generative AI tools have access to millions of research papers and other academic resources. With the right prompts, such as keywords and subject headings, the right tools can help with identifying and discovering relevant academic literature. For example, generative AI may assist with suggesting a list of relevant research papers, and other academic resources associated to a particular research topic.

For thorough or comprehensive searching such as for a research paper or thesis, you should still search the major academic databases in your field. These AI tools use freely available or negotiated underlying datasets. These datasets do not necessarily contain the important journals in any field, however academic databases are produced specifically to provide this coverage. See our Literature review guide and to identify key databases for your field of research, see our Subject Guides.

Adapted from AI tools for literature searching by University of Queensland Library is licensed under CC BY NC 4.0

Adapted from "Searching for literature" by Research Practice with AI at RMIT (RePAIR) is licensed under CC BY 4.0

RMIT subscribed AI tools

Overview

Val is RMIT’s custom-built generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tool available to RMIT staff and students, via login access, for RMIT-related work, research, and learning and teaching purposes. Within a chat-style interface, similar to ChatGPT, you can ask Val questions and provide instructions (called “prompts”), and Val will respond. Some of the things Val can help you with include:

  • assist with key words and search strategies.
  • suggest where you can search for resources - it will not provide you with specific resources.    
  • summarise documents including PDF, Word, PowerPoint and more
  • create images, diagrams and graphs based off prompts (see 'Tips' below).
  • write code, such as for a webpage and for Excel functions.
  • write text content – Val can draft an email, document or instructions.

Tips

  • Val has various “personas” that can be used for specific tasks. The Franklin persona is helpful for researchers by assisting with gaining deeper perspectives on topics. 
  • To generate an image, first use a prompt (i.e. “Hi Val, please create an image of a penguin wearing a mortarboard. The penguin is graduating from RMIT.”). Val will respond that it can’t automatically create images (just yet) and Val will provide more detailed prompts for the image.  Val then asks you select the picture icon (“Generate Image”) to generate the image. 
  • To learn more about how to use Val effectively for your learning and research, enrol in the Generative AI for students at RMIT. (RMIT students and staff only)
  • See the FAQS for more information and tips.

Cautions

  • Always evaluate the information generated by Val for accuracy. 
  • All uses of Val should be in accordance with RMIT policies and academic integrity requirements.
  • Val is a private/closed platform, therefore anything uploaded is safeguarded from the greater web. However, it's best practice NOT to enter prompts that contain personal, sensitive, and health information about yourself or anyone else, including details such as names, ID numbers, email addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth and photos.

Overview

Scopus AI is an AI-based research assistant that uses the Scopus database of peer-reviewed literature to help users explore and understand academic content. It searches the abstracts of documents in Scopus for terms that match the user's query.

The tool uses natural language processing, allowing users to enter questions, statements, or hypothetical scenarios in everyday language rather than relying on specific keywords or Boolean operators. Based on the nature of the query, Scopus AI’s Copilot tool selects either a vector search, a keyword search, or a combination of both to identify relevant documents from over 7,000 publishers, with an emphasis on content published since 2003. It then summarises the content of these abstracts and provides a referenced overview of the information related to the query.

Other features include:

  • Expanded Summary - Provides the option to view a more comprehensive and in-depth response. 
  • Foundational documents - Highlight the most influential papers in Scopus on your topic.  
  • Concept map - Visually maps search results offering a comprehensive overview that allows you to navigate complex relationships easily.  
  • Topic experts - Identify leading authors based on your query alongside explanations of their relevant expertise.  
  • Go deeper (suggested queries) - Offers relevant queries for further exploration, leading to hidden insights in various research fields. 
  • Emerging themes - allows you to uncover rising and novel themes before they become mainstream, by providing mini descriptive summaries, suggested research hypotheses, and references for each identified theme. 

Tips

  • Use natural language when typing in your query 
  • ‘Unhide’ the Copilot steps to see the search string and keywords used 
  • Use the Quick Refence Guide to guide you through the Scopus AI experience.  

Cautions

Scopus AI is a helpful tool for exploring academic literature, but it should be used with care. Here's what to keep in mind: 

  • Always verify with original sources - use Scopus AI summaries as a starting point but read the full papers for accurate context. 
  • Know its limits - it only covers Scopus-indexed content and may miss newer or non-indexed research. 
  • Don’t replace expert judgment - AI insights are not peer-reviewed; critical thinking and subject expertise are essential. 
  • Avoid citing the AI directly - cite the original research articles, not the AI-generated summaries. 
  • Protect sensitive information - don’t input unpublished or confidential research ideas into the tool. 
  • Follow ethical guidelines - make sure your use complies with your institution’s policies on AI in research.

Further reading:

Overview 

The ProQuest Research Assistant embeds AI features within select (not all) ProQuest databases to assist users with searching and then reviewing and analyzing documents from their search results. For a full list see: FAQs.

The information the assistant provides is a mixture of ‘traditional AI” and “Generative AI” using a Large Language Model (LLM).  

You need to start by entering a keyword search.  

After the initial search, the Research assistant provides synonyms and related terms, with the option to select them and refine the search. These terms are generated by a LLM and are based on the user’s original query and the database context.  

The following Gen AI content is included once an article, paper or thesis etc has been selected:

  • "Key Takeaway". Provides a one sentence summary of the document, then lists 2-3 additional topics discussed. Information provided is derived from the full text of the document. 
  • "Explore Suggested Resources".  This is a feature which already existed in ProQuest and suggests similar documents based on index terms. 
  • "Indexing Terms" are listed with the option to search using these terms.
  • "What are the Findings or conclusions?" Findings or conclusions are generated based on the document. They quote and link back to the location in the document. An option to copy the quotation from the document is provided. 
  • "Brainstorm related research topics". Research topics are generated based on the document. Main topics and sub-topics are suggested. Searches can then be conducted based on the specified topic. 
  • "Describe the important concepts". Important concepts and their explanations are extracted from the document. They are linked so a further search can be run on this concept. 
  • "What are the essential details". Essential details are generated based on the document. This is a summary of the document with more detail than the key takeaways. It has a defined structure, covering the main point, purpose/hypothesis, study design/methods, results/outcomes, implications and study limitations.  

Tips 

  • Enter your search terms first. Suggested alternative/additional search terms only appear after the initial search.  
  • Documents under 150 words will not display the Research Assistant's features. 
  • If you are searching ProQuest outside of the included databases, AI assistant features may not be available. 

Cautions 

  • Check results and suggestions for accuracy. ProQuest also recommends that you check for accuracy and verify the responses against the source materials provided.  
  • Know its limits - it only covers ProQuest-indexed content and may miss newer or non-indexed research. 
  • Don’t replace expert judgment - AI insights are not peer-reviewed; critical thinking and subject expertise are essential. 
  • Avoid citing the AI directly - cite the original research articles, not the AI-generated summaries. 
  • Protect sensitive information - don’t input unpublished or confidential research ideas into the tool. 
  • Follow ethical guidelines - make sure your use complies with your institution’s policies on AI in research. 

Tools for literature searching

Selected tools

Some of the more popular tools you might like to explore are below. Note that there are many more, and new developments are happening all the time. You can search the web to investigate what is available.

Tool Access/Cost Data Source Notes
Elicit An account is required to use Elicit. There is a free basic plan, and paid plans for extra features and capabilities  Semantic Scholar. Elicit can base answers on abstracts, plus the full text of open access papers  Enter your topic or question in natural language
Scite Scite requires a login and payment to use Scite Assistant, or to see the full Scite Search results Agreements with selected partners.   Scite has two main components. Scite Search lets you explore citation links between papers, and whether citations are positive, negative etc. Scite Assistant is the AI research assistant
Semantic Scholar You can search Semantic Scholar  and create account for free. Agreements with selected partners. Search for topics and authors. Semantic Scholar also provides metrics including citation counts,  h-index, and highly influential citations.
Consensus You can search Consensus without creating an account, although certain features do require an account. There is a free basic plan, and paid plans for extra features and capabilities  Semantic Scholar Enter your topic or question in natural language. Turning the Copilot feature on enables you to give conversational commands such as 'Write a 3 paragraph literature review on...' or 'Give me a two sentence summary in simple language on...'
SciSpace You can use SciSpace without creating an account. There is a free basic plan, and paid plans for extra features and capabilities  Unknown Enter your topic or question in natural language 
Litmaps You can use Litmaps without creating an account. There is a free basic plan, and paid plans for extra features and capabilities

Agreements with selected partners including OAmg

 Enter your topic or question in natural language or by the citation or DOI.  Litmaps displays results in a visual format based on connection, using citations and references.
Lens You can search and analyse patents and scholarly works free of charge. Various subcriptions are available for enhanced analysis and reporting. Agreements with selected data partners including IP Australia. Also enables you to search for patents and biological sequences disclosed in patents.
Scinapse You can search for papers and track your history free of charge. Paid plans include extra features including topic anaylsis and reporting.  

Pubmed

OpenAlex

Semanitc Scholar

 Enter your topic using keywords.
Keenious You can use Keenious without creating an account. There is a free basic plan, and paid plans for extra features and capabilities OpenAlex Keenious offers you recommendations of papers and topics, based on the text you're writing. You can write straight into the box on the Keenious website, or add the Keenious addon into Word or Google Docs on your personal device

Adapted from AI tools for literature searching by University of Queensland Library is licensed under CC BY NC 4.0 

Tips

  • Generative AI tools can help you to discover research papers, books, and other scholarly academic resources you might miss with regular searches. 
  • Look for generative AI tools that search reputable scholarly databases, such as Scopus, Semantic Scholar, PubMed. 
  • Some reputable academic catalogues offer integrated generative AI assistants and AI-powered tools, such as Scopus AI, Semantic Scholar, and ProQuest.  
  • You can also use generative AI to help categorise and organise scholarly papers and other academic work according to research topic, concepts, key terms, and terminology. 
  • Use these tools as an extra technique for research and not to replace a thorough search
  • Verify any information provided by generative AI tools with credible sources and check for missing information.
  • You should acknowledge your use of AI tools to complete your work. See our artificial intelligence referencing guidelines for more information. 

Adapted from "Searching for literature" by Research Practice with AI at RMIT (RePAIR) is licensed under CC BY 4.0
Adapted from "AI tools for literature searching" by University of Queensland Library is licensed under CC BY NC 4.0 

Cautions

  • Not all generative AI tools have the capability to search and link to reputable scholarly databases. Some AI tools will simply fabricate plausible but entirely fake references. Check that the tools you use provide a hyperlink to any referenced document, which you will need to manually verify and download.
  • The use of generative AI as a as your personal digital assistant should supplement but not replace your own systematic, structured searching in scholarly databases.
  • Avoid relying directly on any resources identified by generative AI. Generative AI is prone to generate inaccurate information, including irrelevant and non-existent references. Check everything.  
    RePAIR
  • Many AI tools will incorporate anything you upload into their underlying software. In general:
    • Don't upload materials from Library resources such as databases. This is in breach of copyright, and license agreements
    • Don't upload your own sensitive or private documents. It's possible another user of the tool might retrieve your information from the underlying software 

Adapted from "AI tools for literature searching" by University of Queensland Library is licensed under CC BY NC 4.0 

Summarising literature

Selected tools

Generative AI tools can assist in providing automated summaries that can help you clarify and consolidate your understanding of research topic. These tools can be a powerful digital assistant and provide clarity explanation about key terms related to your literature searches, for example. Nevertheless, be sure to remember that summaries generated by generative AI tools are frequently inaccurate. 

Many existing generative AI tools can help with summarising literature resources, including: 

Tool Access/Cost Notes
Val* Log in access for RMIT staff and students. *RMIT endorsed. Use the paperclip icon to upload pdf and ask Val to summarise or answer questions. 
Paper Digest Subscription needed for unlimited access. There is a daily quota on free services including using Review/rewriting features.   Use Academic Reader or Research Pilot to upload a pdf or paste text. Then ask a question e.g. sumarise this paper.  
Enago Read Free version allows limited number of questions, summaries and insights per month. Paid option allows greater or unlimited exploration.   Quickly generate summaries and 'key insights' or ask questions about research papers. 
SciSpace Log in needed to use 'Chat with pdf'.   'Chat with pdf' or extract data from multiple pdfs. Also has Chrome widget to add to browser. 
ChatGPT Log in for extra features.   Enter the abstract or upload a pdf. Ask ChatGPT to summarise or ask questions about research papers. 
Microsoft CoPilot RMIT has an enterprise license to CoPilot. It can be used with Microsoft Edge and other MS products.  Use CoPilot with Edge to search for articles and to ask further questions about research papers. Upload your own documents. The *RePAIR SharePoint site has a short guide to using CoPilot with Microsoft Edge. *(RMIT staff and students only). 
Elicit Log in is needed to use Elicit. Summarise and chat with 4 papers a once. Free version limits number of papers you can extract data from per month. Paid options allow greater or unlimited exploration.   Generate a research report on a topic. Elicit has a focus on analysis. 

Adapted from "Summarising literature" by Research Practice with AI at RMIT (RePAIR) is licensed under CC BY 4.0

Tips for summarising

  • Generative AI can supplement but not replace your reading of the literature. Be critical and evaluate the accuracy of any generative AI summary. 
  • Read carefully the generated summary, check the ideas in the text against your reading of the literature, and put the summary in your own words.
  • Take especial care with direct quotations. Generative AI tools may fail to identify direct quotes or may misquote the literature. A manual check is the only way to be sure.  

Adapted from "Summarising literature" by Research Practice with AI at RMIT (RePAIR) is licensed under CC BY 4.0

Cautions

  • Some generative AI tools require uploading a document to summarise. Avoid uploading any material that is personal, sensitive or protected by intellectual property rights, including your own intellectual property.
  • Exclude all personal and sensitive data from the document before uploading and read carefully data protection and privacy statements. Always make sure that you have permission to upload the academic work that you need to summarise.
  • Be careful of misleading content generated in the summary. Generative AI doesn’t have a real human knowledge about your research topic and selected literature. Hence, be cautious about content generated in the summary.

Adapted from "Summarising literature" by Research Practice with AI at RMIT (RePAIR) is licensed under CC BY 4.0