Your first week with an AI assistant

ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini side by side, and how to pick.

What it is

The big three assistants overlap a lot, but each has strengths. This module gets you set up, walks through the features you'll use daily, and helps you choose.

Why it matters

Most people use one tool out of habit. Five minutes of comparison can save hours.

Key ideas

• Use the USC-provided workspace for university work where one exists.
• Projects or custom GPTs keep course context in one place.
• Give context: who you are, what it's for, what good looks like.

Try it: Same question, three assistants

1. Take one real task from this week, like an email, a concept or a plan.
2. Give the identical prompt to ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini.
3. Rank the answers and write one line on why the winner won.