Comparing AI Tools

Audience: Students, Faculty, Staff

Responsible Group: Enterprise Systems Team

Overview

The University of Arkansas supports five AI options that departments may consider if they want to use a free version or a paid licensed versions.

• Copilot Chat– (already included in Microsoft account) A lightweight chat experience grounded in web-search answers for quick Q&A, web research, brainstorming, and writing help.
• Microsoft 365 Copilot – (for purchase) An AI assistant embedded in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams that leverages Microsoft Graph to accelerate everyday productivity. Uses all of your work files on Microsoft 365 when answering prompts. 
• OpenAI ChatGPT Edu – (for purchase ) An institution-optimized AI platform for teaching, research, and administrative work with FERPA-aligned privacy and enterprise controls.
• Google Gemini for Education - (free version) A generative AI assistant that works as Chrome browser add-on, on a web app, or mobile app. Uses Google's AI models. It's models were designed for educational purposes.
• Google NotebookLM - (free version) A personal AI-powered research and thinking partner, grounded only in the information you provide.

Key Features

Copilot Chat (Already available with UARK account)

• Embedded in Microsoft 365 apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams).
• Great for quick Q&A, brainstorming, writing help, and web research.
• Consumer-level privacy; not intended for sensitive or FERPA-protected institutional data.

Microsoft 365 Copilot (Faculty & Staff)

• Uses Microsoft Graph to work with your email, calendar, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams content (within your tenant permissions).
• Enterprise compliance posture (e.g., data remains in your M365 tenant; licensing determines covered standards).
• Use cases: drafting reports/policies, analyzing budgets/enrollment/assessment data, building presentations, summarizing and actioning Teams meetings.
• Cost: $240 per year per license

OpenAI ChatGPT Edu (Faculty & Staff)

• Runs on advanced GPT-4o family models tailored for higher education use cases.
• FERPA-aligned; institutional data is not used to train OpenAI models.
• Enterprise controls: SSO/SCIM, role-based policies, admin dashboards.
• Use cases: lesson/curriculum planning, policy and communications drafting, research support (summarization, coding help, data analysis), grant writing, IT/HR documentation.
• Access levels:
  • Standard User – Chat, file uploads, data analysis.
    • Cost: $120 per year per license 
  • Power User – Includes Deep Research for faculty/researchers/advanced staff.
    • Cost: $240 per year per license
• Licensed per seat with higher-ed pricing.

Google Gemini for Education (Already available with UARK account)

• General-purpose AI chat for writing, brainstorming, summarization, and idea generation.
• Strong integration with Google Search and web-based information.
• Best for non-sensitive tasks and exploratory work.
• Does not provide access to Google Workspace

Google NotebookLM (Already available with UARK account)

• Research and study assistant that works only from sources you upload (documents, PDFs, links).
• Excellent for summarizing readings, synthesizing notes, and question-answering from provided materials.
• Best for coursework, literature reviews, and structured research preparation.
• Does not access institutional storage.

Comparison at a Glance