If you’ve tried to research AI tools for your business, you’ve almost certainly encountered a wall of overlapping product names, competing claims, and breathless enthusiasm. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, Perplexity, Grok, Meta AI — and behind each of these, the underlying model companies: OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Microsoft, Meta.

It’s genuinely confusing, and the confusion is partly by design. AI companies have strong financial incentives to make their tools sound both essential and uniquely capable.

This guide cuts through the noise. For each major AI tool and model, we’ll explain what it actually is, what it’s best at, and what kind of business might get the most value from it.

The Landscape: Models vs. Products

Before diving into individual tools, it’s worth understanding the difference between AI models (the underlying technology) and AI products (the tools you actually use).

The model does the thinking. The product is the interface you interact with.

For example, ChatGPT is a product built by OpenAI using their GPT-4o model. Microsoft Copilot is a product built by Microsoft, which uses the same GPT-4o model under the hood. So using ChatGPT and using Copilot are, in some ways, using the same technology — just in different contexts with different features around them.

Understanding this helps explain why some tools feel similar, and why the choice of product often matters more than the choice of model.

ChatGPT / OpenAI

Made by: OpenAI
Best for: General-purpose AI assistance, writing, research, coding, analysis

ChatGPT is the tool that started the current wave of mainstream AI adoption. It’s the most widely recognised AI assistant in the world, and for good reason — it’s capable, accessible, and works well across a huge range of tasks.

What it does well:

  • Drafting and editing written content (emails, reports, marketing copy, proposals)
  • Summarising documents and long texts
  • Answering questions and explaining complex topics
  • Writing and debugging code
  • Brainstorming and creative work
  • Data analysis when you upload files (in the paid tier)

Free vs paid: The free version (GPT-4o mini) handles most everyday tasks. ChatGPT Plus (around €20/month) gives access to more powerful models, image generation with DALL-E, and the ability to upload files and documents.

Best for businesses: Any business that wants a capable general-purpose AI assistant. Particularly useful for marketing teams, business owners who write a lot, and anyone who needs to process and summarise information quickly.

Microsoft 365 Copilot

Made by: Microsoft (powered by OpenAI)
Best for: Businesses already using Microsoft 365 — Outlook, Word, Excel, Teams, PowerPoint

Copilot is Microsoft’s AI assistant, built directly into the Microsoft 365 applications most businesses already use. Rather than switching to a separate tool, Copilot works inside the software you’re already in.

What it does well:

  • Drafting and replying to emails in Outlook
  • Summarising long email threads and meetings
  • Generating first drafts of documents in Word
  • Analysing data and creating charts in Excel
  • Summarising Teams meetings and extracting action points
  • Creating presentations in PowerPoint from a brief

Pricing: Available as an add-on to Microsoft 365 Business plans at around €30/user/month, or included in higher-tier plans. Pricing varies by region and existing licence type.

Best for businesses: Businesses already on Microsoft 365 — which is a large proportion of small businesses. If you’re paying for Microsoft 365 and you have more than a few staff members, Copilot can pay for itself in time saved relatively quickly.

Google Gemini

Made by: Google
Best for: Businesses using Google Workspace — Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet

Gemini is Google’s AI, integrated across the entire Google Workspace suite. Like Copilot for Microsoft users, Gemini brings AI directly into the tools Google Workspace users already use daily.

What it does well:

  • Drafting and summarising in Gmail
  • Creating and editing documents in Google Docs
  • Analysing data in Google Sheets
  • Summarising Google Meet meetings
  • Creating presentations in Google Slides
  • Deep research mode for complex topics

Pricing: Gemini is included in Google Workspace Business Standard and above. A standalone Gemini Advanced subscription for individual users costs around €20/month.

Best for businesses: Google Workspace users — particularly common in smaller businesses, startups, and international teams who adopted Google tools early.

Anthropic Claude

Made by: Anthropic
Best for: Writing, analysis, complex reasoning, handling long documents, building AI agents

Claude is often described as the AI model that produces the most natural, nuanced written output. It’s particularly strong when working with very long documents, maintaining context across extended conversations, and producing carefully considered responses.

What it does well:

  • Long document analysis — Claude can handle very large files
  • Writing that sounds natural and considered, not generic
  • Complex analysis and reasoning tasks
  • Safe, careful responses on sensitive topics
  • Building custom AI agents (via the API)
  • Research and synthesis across multiple sources

Pricing: Claude.ai has a free tier. Claude Pro is around €18/month. The Anthropic API (used for building custom agents) is priced per usage.

Best for businesses: Businesses that produce a lot of written content, professional services firms dealing with complex documents, and developers building custom AI applications. Also the foundation for W3IT’s custom AI chat agents.

Perplexity AI

Made by: Perplexity
Best for: Research, fact-checking, finding current information with sources

Perplexity is less well-known than ChatGPT or Claude, but it fills a specific gap very effectively. Unlike standard AI tools, Perplexity searches the web in real time and provides answers with cited sources — making it closer to an AI-powered search engine than a conversational assistant.

What it does well:

  • Research questions that need current, up-to-date information
  • Fact-checking claims against real sources
  • Competitive research (finding recent news about competitors, markets, pricing)
  • Topic summaries with verifiable references
  • Questions where you need to know where the answer comes from

Pricing: Free for basic use. Perplexity Pro is around €18/month.

Best for businesses: Any business where staff spend significant time researching — market analysis, procurement, due diligence, compliance. Particularly useful for legal, financial, and consultancy businesses. Also excellent for anyone who needs AI responses they can verify and cite.

Meta AI

Made by: Meta
Best for: Social media content, customer communications via WhatsApp and Facebook

Meta AI is built directly into WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and the Meta AI website. It uses Meta’s Llama models and is deeply integrated into the platforms where many businesses already communicate with customers.

What it does well:

  • Drafting social media content for Facebook and Instagram
  • Assisting with WhatsApp conversations at scale
  • Image generation (within Meta apps)
  • General Q&A within WhatsApp Business

Pricing: Currently free within Meta’s platforms.

Best for businesses: Businesses with significant social media presence or customer communication via WhatsApp — particularly relevant for restaurants, hospitality, retail, and any business on the Costa del Sol where WhatsApp is the dominant business communication channel.

Grok

Made by: xAI (Elon Musk)
Best for: X (Twitter) users, real-time information, less filtered responses

Grok is xAI’s AI assistant, integrated into X (formerly Twitter). It has access to real-time X posts, which gives it a unique ability to surface very current information — particularly breaking news and trending topics.

What it does well:

  • Real-time information from X posts
  • Current events and news
  • More direct, less cautious responses than some other models

Pricing: Available with X Premium (around €8/month) or via the Grok app.

Best for businesses: Businesses that use X actively and need real-time social media intelligence. Less relevant for most small businesses than the tools above.

Microsoft Copilot (standalone)

Made by: Microsoft
Best for: General AI assistance without a Microsoft 365 subscription

Separate from Microsoft 365 Copilot, Microsoft also offers a standalone Copilot app and website — a general-purpose AI assistant powered by GPT-4o, available free with a Microsoft account.

This is a capable free option for businesses not yet ready to invest in paid AI tools. It supports image generation, web search, and document uploads in the free tier.

How to Choose

The honest answer: start with what you already have.

If you’re on Microsoft 365 — explore Copilot. If you’re on Google Workspace — enable Gemini. These tools are built into software you’re already using and often included in what you’re already paying for.

For general-purpose AI assistance, ChatGPT remains the most capable and versatile option for most business tasks. For research with verified sources, add Perplexity. For social media and WhatsApp, Meta AI.

For businesses that want something built specifically for them — a chat agent on their website, an automation tailored to their workflow, or a custom implementation — Claude’s API is the most capable foundation for that kind of work.

W3IT helps businesses in Gibraltar, Estepona, Marbella and across the Costa del Sol identify which AI tools are right for their specific situation, and implements them properly. Get in touch to discuss what makes sense for your business.