Gemini, ChatGPT or Claude: What's the best AI tool?
Right now everyone is using AI tools as if they were search engines. Marketers are changing their strategies from SEO to AIEO or GEO and putting all their efforts into getting visibility on these tools. Some people prefer Gemini, others ChatGPT, and a few look everything up on Claude, but which one is the best?
In this article, we will tell you what the best AI tool is from a user perspective, but also explain everything about them so you can get a better understanding of how they work and get the visibility boost you are looking for for your site. Let's dive in!
Their background/story
Understanding the background of an AI tool might seem useless, but it actually isn't. You can better understand how it works and how to work with it if you know how long it has been in use, what its main goal is, or with what intent it was created.
ChatGPT
Launched in 2022 and created by OpenAI, ChatGPT is probably the most well-known and widely used AI tool nowadays. It's a generative artificial intelligence chatbot and it was the first AI tool widely accessible to any user, which is probably the reason why it went viral after its launch.
This tool uses a predictive model that relies on large language models (LLMs). These models are trained on massive amounts of text data to learn patterns in language, allowing the system to predict the most likely sequence of words in response to a user's prompt.
Regarding the data provided by ChatGPT, this tool does not rely on a single traditional database but uses different types of databases and technologies like vector databases (like Pinecone or Weaviate), NoSQL/SQL databases (i.e. SingleStoreDB) and probably web search engines (like Bing as it's not clear whether it uses Google or not), but it's not confirmed and that's a problem. ChatGPT team hasn't disclosed what resources it uses, we know that it checks websites like Wikipedia, Reddit or Reuters like other AI tools, but it's not clear what information is retrieved as sometimes the answers are not very good. But we will talk about this later in the article…
Google Gemini
We already talked a little about Gemini in our post on how to rank in it, but if we go through its launch, we can get a better understanding of this tool. Gemini is an AI tool created by Google, whose previous name was Bard, and it is both a generative artificial intelligence chatbot and a virtual assistant. Released in 2023, it is powered by the large language model (LLM) of the same name. It works like a multimodal LLM, meaning it can process and generate not only text but also computer code, images, audio, and video.
The tool was created because Google saw potential in having one after the launch of ChatGPT, which was, as mentioned earlier, a sensation. Even though its beginnings weren't as strong as ChatGPT's, Google now uses a "thinking model," capable of reasoning through steps before responding using chain-of-thought techniques, and, as Google claims, it's "its most intelligent model to date."
The information given by this AI tool is retrieved from different data sources and database technologies, particularly within the Google Cloud ecosystem, to provide answers. This makes the tool quite interesting to use, as the information comes from updated, recognizable sources, ensuring it is truthful and current.
Another key characteristic, from a marketing perspective, is that in order to appear on Gemini, you have to follow almost the same guidelines as with Google search visibility. This makes it possible to "kill two birds with one stone" by having a Gemini visibility strategy.
Claude
Claude was created by Anthropic and launched in 2023, same as Gemini. This AI tool is not as well-known as the previous two but it's quite interesting as it has some key differences that make it stand out from the rest. The app was developed by former members of OpenAI with a focus on AI safety.
However, what makes Claude interesting is the way it works, as it combines the two models: like ChatGPT it predicts the answers based on the information used, but it also has the capacity of reasoning the answers to give better results. Besides, the tool has three models depending on what the user needs: Opus is the most intelligent model, great for complex queries if you are looking for nuanced reasoning; Sonnet is great for coding and content creation and Haiku is the fastest model, perfect for high-volume tasks.
The answers provided by Claude are retrieved from a combination of a vast training dataset including: training data (in other words, internal knowledge), real-time information from web search, and Model Context Protocol (MCP) which are external databases like PostgreSQL, Snowflake, and BigQuery. Claude works very intelligently as it always searches from different sources, summarizes the information, and provides citations to all the info provided which makes it a reliable tool.
How they work
Even though they are the same type of tool, each one works differently, and it shows in the answers given.
All the models seem fine at first because they are fast, and the information they provide often looks like it has been written by a human. However, if you ask them a question about something you already know well, you will start to notice some issues. For example, ChatGPT looks for information through its connected resources (databases, websites, social media, etc.) and generates answers based on that by predicting human-like responses. For simple Q&As it's great, but when asking about something more complex… You will start to find inaccuracies and outdated information.
In the table below, we compare some key differences between the three AI tools to better understand how they work and, therefore, what type of answers you might get when you ask them a question or look for information about something.
| How it works? | Where is the info retrieved from? | Ethical and legal compliance | How to properly use it? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini | Gemini's model natively understands images, audio, video, and text simultaneously and it's recently using a "thinking model" that can reason your question/prompt. | Gemini retrieves most of the information from its own system, so to speak, Google, but it uses different data sources. Google Search Google Ecosystem ("Connected Apps") User-Uploaded Content Device Data | Gemini is quite controversial regarding ethical and legal compliance as it uses users data from other Google products as well as device data like screen content, contacts, and app usage information. Besides it potentially can inherit and amplify societal biases and it usually generate content that infringes on existing copyrighted work. | The model needs context and good prompts to generate high-quality answers. It must be noted to that, regarding image generation, it's quite difficult to do it. |
| ChatGPT | The ChatGPT model looks for similarities in its resources (databases, webs, etc.) as it provides answers predicting the next most likely word in a sequence. There's no "thinking model" involved and the learning is unsupervised. | It's quite secretive about the resources used and, it shows as sometimes the information given is outdated and even wrong. What we know for sure is that it uses users interactions and the feedback provided to refine the algorithm. | ChatGPT has been on the eye of everyone for its ethical and legal compliance as it uses: Users data not being compliant with the GDPR and even leaking data and having security problems It doesn't respect copyright nor authorship It has been proved it perpetuate and amplify biases | Same as Gemini, you must provide detailed context and know how to ask questions as the prompt can make the answers vary a lot and refinements are always needed. |
| Claude | Claude works similarly to ChatGPT as it also functions by analyzing vast amounts of text data to predict and generate human-like answers. However, as Gemini's, this tool also understands the information analyzed having a mixed model. It works with three models (Opus, Sonnet and Haiku) depending on your needs. | Claude connects with different sources to retrieve the given information. Those sources are: Training data. Real-time information from web search. Model Context Protocol | Claude uses constitutional AI, a training technique that was developed by Anthropic to improve ethical and legal compliance. It works with two models at the same time to reduce bias and dangerous content. However, you should be careful with the free version as input/output data can be used for training. | Identify what you want to do with it and use the best model based on that. Regarding the way you have to formulate your questions or prompts, you don't have to worry about it as its conversational nature make it easy to prompt. |
Their pros and cons
Now that you know the basics, we can go through the juicy info: what they do right and wrong.
Gemini
We all use Gemini every day, as this tool is integrated into Google's search engine. Even though it usually works well and provides reliable, sourced information, there are some downsides that every user should acknowledge and take into account.
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| It can act as an agent, directly using tools like Google Apps | As all your Google features are connected when using Gemini, the app collects personal information from your email, etc. |
| The information provided by the app is usually way more reliable and up-to-date than the one given by other tools like ChatGPT. | Sometimes hallucinations can't be avoided, since the information provided comes from sources that may be incorrect. |
| It has a free version | It's sold as a free app, but it actually has a paid subscription, which makes the free version limited. |
| A versatile tool as it can generate text, code, images and even video. | Image and video generation is quite difficult. |
| It's fast | When poor prompts are used or little context given, the tool takes longer to answer as it generates a "a hidden chain of thought". |
| It's not great with ethical and legal compliance. First, because it uses users data from the Google workspace as well as device data. Second, because it doesn't respect copyright. |
ChatGPT
ChatGPT is the most used tool from this comparison, but it has lots of issues that, even though are sometimes imperceptible, it affect directly on the results given by the tool and how it interacts with users.
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| It has a free version | The free version of the tool may have a limited knowledge base. |
| It's apparently easy to use, even though at least some prompt expertise is recommended due to it's variability. | It generates responses based on patterns and context which makes the data retrieval very variable depending on the interaction or prompt used. |
| It's a versatile tool as it can generate text, code, images and even video. | It's prone to give you plausible but incorrect information (sometimes called information "hallucinations") as it's main goal is always to answer even though it doesn't know the answer. |
| The tool retains in the same conversation all the instructions and context given. | The way it references the information is quite bad as sometimes it gives you the link and sometimes it doesn't. This is because it doesn't 'maintain or enforce a structured schema or referential integrity like traditional databases do', as stated by Paul Hankin in a LinkedIn post. |
| It's quick providing answers. | As a lot of users have experienced, it's highly biased when providing information as it's highly based on massive amounts of internet text. |
| It's not great with ethical and legal compliance. First, because it doesn't always reference the information, which can favor plagiarism. Second, it uses user data, as conversations are collected to help train future models, and this can raise privacy concerns for some users. |
Claude
Although it is the least known tool of this comparison, Claude has some interesting pros that any of the tools listed have; but not everything is as perfect as it seems.
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| It has a free version. | It's free version is quite limited as it has a day limit and users won't be able to access to Opus. |
| Its legal and ethical compliance is excellent. In fact, the best one. | As it has an amazing legal and ethical compliance, sometimes it might not answer to sensitive questions or prompts. |
| The texts generated by the tool are very natural human-like. | It doesn't generate images nor videos as Gemini and ChatGPT do. |
| It's fast | During busy hours, free users get lower priority, so answering questions will take it more time. |
| The results provided are usually way more reliable and up-to-date than the one given by other tools like ChatGPT. | |
| You don't need prompt expertise due to its thinking model and conversational nature. | |
| The Artifacts feature is amazing and no other AI tool listed has something like it. This feature allows users to have a dedicated, side-panel workspace to generate, preview, and interact with content and even turn ideas into functioning tools. For example, you can code and be able to interact with what you are coding. |
*Yes, we have avoided in the cons section the environmental issue as we are comparing how these tools work, but we think it's worth mentioning it. You can learn more about it in this MIT News article.
What's the best AI tool: Gemini, ChatGPT or Claude?
The easy answer is "it depends on the use," as none of the three tools listed here are perfect and we don't really love AI that much. However, if we have to choose, Claude is the best one. For us, the fact that it uses a mixed model (predictive-thinking models) is what makes it better than the other two; that, plus its ease of use and genuine respect for privacy, makes it stand out.
It obviously has some disadvantages, as we have mentioned before, like the fact that it censors some information when it identifies it as problematic, but the way it processes information and the possibility of choosing the model based on your needs and tasks is great.
However, even though we have a preference, each tool can be used for different purposes:
- We recommend Gemini… if you are looking for a tool that knows you perfectly, cites resources properly, and can be integrated with all of Google Workspace.
- We recommend ChatGPT… if you want to pay for an app that won't always give you truthful answers. Well, let's be fair, ChatGPT is good when you want to rewrite a text or automate certain tasks.
- We recommend Claude… if you want to use AI easily while protecting yourself and your copyrights.
What do we REALLY recommend? Not using any AI tool. As you can see, all of them have a lot of cons that can't be overlooked. If you want information about something you already know, traditional search engines work amazingly well. You don't need a chatbot to confirm everything you say while giving unreliable information and wasting resources like water at the same time.