Seven AI Tools That Handle the Heavy Lifting – Many of Them Free

Millions of students and professionals across the globe now rely on Artificial Intelligence (AI) to boost productivity. With the arrival of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, workflows in research, work, and creative fields have transformed dramatically. But ChatGPT is no longer the only major player in the ecosystem. Today, dozens of AI tools can handle everything from image creation to code editing and even planning your entire weekend itinerary using AI agents.

With so many options — many of them free — users often feel overwhelmed. This concise guide breaks down some of the most widely used AI tools available right now. It will help you identify the right tool for each task while outlining key features, pricing, and ideal use cases.

AI Cursor

Cursor AI is an AI-first code editor built on Visual Studio Code. Designed specifically for developers, it functions as a powerful Copilot by integrating AI directly into the coding workflow. Cursor can help write code, debug, refactor, and even generate complete code blocks from natural language instructions. In short, it’s a dedicated programming assistant aimed at boosting developer efficiency.

Cursor offers several pricing tiers, including two business plans and four individual plans. The free “Hobby” tier includes one week of Pro trial, limited agent requests, and limited tab completions. Paid plans include Pro at $20/month, Pro+ at $60/month, and Ultra at $200/month. The Teams plan under business costs $40/month. Cursor AI is ideal for developers seeking an all-in-one AI tool with a free entry option and room to scale up later.

Midjourney

Midjourney is renowned for generating high-quality images from natural language prompts using a diffusion model. Its viral creations — such as hyper-realistic images of Donald Trump being detained or Pope Francis in a Balenciaga puffer coat — demonstrate its creative potential. The tool is widely used for concept art, illustrations, design briefs, and creative ideation.

Midjourney has no free tier. Its Standard subscription starts at $10 per month with roughly 200 image generations. Other plans include Regular ($24/month), Pro ($48/month), and Mega ($96/month). It is best suited for designers, creative professionals, and users who rely on consistent image or visual production.

Descript

Descript.com is an AI-powered audio and video editing platform that makes editing as simple as modifying a text document. Built for efficient podcast and video production, Descript converts media into text transcripts, allowing users to edit audio or video by simply deleting or modifying the transcript.

Its advanced features include Studio Sound for instant audio cleanup and Eye Contact, which automatically adjusts a speaker’s gaze to simulate looking directly at the camera. Descript also serves as an AI co-editor, generating scripts, offering feedback, and making edits based on user instructions. Plans include a Free tier, Hobbyist at $16/month, and Creator at $24/month.

Claude AI

Claude AI from Anthropic is a general-purpose conversational AI ideal for writing, coding, brainstorming, summarisation, scripting, and data analysis. Known for its clarity, safety, and high-quality outputs, Claude is widely used by researchers, developers, and professionals who need structured, reliable content.

Claude is available in Free, Pro ($20/month), and Max ($100/month) tiers. The free version supports text and image uploads, code generation, web search integration, and data visualization. The Pro plan is tailored to power users handling deeper research or coding tasks, while the Max tier offers priority access and significantly higher usage limits.

Runway ML

Runway ML specializes in AI-driven video and film editing. From text-to-video to image-to-video generation, Runway provides a suite of tools for creators who work heavily with visual media. It helps users produce and edit videos, images, and even 3D assets using simple natural language cues.

Features include background removal, color grading, text-to-3D textures, and sound generation. Runway offers a Free plan with 125 one-time credits, the ability to manage three video projects, and 5GB asset storage. Annual paid tiers include Standard ($144), Pro ($336), Unlimited ($912), and Enterprise ($2,000). This tool is especially suitable for video creators and digital artists.

Perplexity AI

Perplexity combines AI-powered search and research assistance, offering quick, well-cited answers instead of traditional link-based search results. It summarises long documents, provides follow-up insights, and lets users explore topics deeper through conversational interactions. This makes it excellent for research, learning, and real-time fact-checking.

Perplexity includes Personal, Education, and Business tiers. Personal includes Pro at $20/month and Max at $200/month. Under Business, Enterprise Pro costs $40/month and Enterprise Max costs $325/month. Students and educators can redeem Pro for free, making it a popular academic tool.

Fliki

Fliki.ai is built for turning text into videos using AI-generated voices. It is ideal for social media content, voice-over projects, marketing videos, corporate communication, training materials, and educational content. With polished AI voices and templates, users can create engaging, professional-grade videos with minimal effort.

Fliki offers a Free plan with over 300 voices, 80+ languages, 100+ dialects, and five minutes of monthly credits. Users can convert scripts, blogs, product pages, presentations, or raw footage into videos. Paid plans include Standard at $21/month, Premium at $66/month, and custom Enterprise pricing.

Each AI tool listed here addresses a specific need for professionals and students. While these tools can significantly enhance productivity and creativity, they should be viewed as supplements — not replacements – for human judgment and imagination. AI can assist, but the quality, originality, and accuracy of the final output always depend on the user’s expertise and oversight.