How to Get the Most Out of AI: Research Before You Decide

How many browser tabs did your last big decision take?

You know the drill. You’re trying to pick a new laptop, plan a trip, choose an insurance plan, or just understand some topic before you commit — and twenty minutes later you’ve got fifteen tabs open, three of them contradict each other, and you’re more confused than when you started.

That’s the kind of grind most of us still do by hand. And it’s exactly the kind of work AI is great at taking off your plate.

In part one of this series, we covered using AI to learn anything. Today’s use case is its close cousin: using AI as a deep research assistant.

Let AI Do the Digging

A good research assistant doesn’t just hand you a pile of links. They go read the sources, weigh them against each other, and come back with a clear summary of what actually matters — for your specific question.

That’s something today’s AI tools do remarkably well. Tools like Perplexity, NotebookLM, and the “deep research” modes inside Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini can pull from dozens of sources, compare options, and synthesize it all into one briefing you can actually act on.

The key, as always, comes down to prompting. Below are two prompts to put AI to work as your research assistant. Tailor them to your needs.

First, a prompt for getting a clear, balanced briefing on any topic before you decide:

You are my research assistant. I want a clear, balanced briefing on
[TOPIC or QUESTION] so I can make an informed decision.

Do the following:
1. First, ask me 2–3 questions to understand my goal, my situation, and what a good outcome looks like for me. Wait for my answers.
2. Research the topic from multiple, credible sources. Prioritize primary sources and recent information, and note the date of anything time-sensitive.
3. Give me a briefing in this structure:
   - The short answer (2–3 sentences)
   - Key findings, organized by theme
   - The main options or viewpoints, with the trade-offs of each
   - What the experts disagree on, and why
   - What I should watch out for
4. Cite your sources with links so I can verify them. If you're unsure, or the evidence is thin, say so plainly instead of guessing.
5. End with the 2–3 questions I should still answer for myself before deciding.

Keep it concise and skimmable. No filler. Don't use emoji or excessive em-dashes.

Next, a prompt for when you’re choosing between options — a product, a service, a tool, a place:

You are my research assistant helping me choose between options for
[DECISION — e.g. a laptop, a CRM, a place to move].

1. First, ask me about my budget, my must-haves, my nice-to-haves, and any deal-breakers. Wait for my answers.
2. Identify the strongest 3–5 options that actually fit my criteria.
3. Build a comparison table that scores each option against MY criteria — not generic specs.
4. For each option, give a one-line "best for…" and its single biggest drawback.
5. Flag anything that reads like marketing hype versus a real, verifiable benefit.
6. Give me your top recommendation for my situation and explain the reasoning. Then give a runner-up in case my priorities shift.
7. Cite your sources with links. Tell me how confident you are and what could change the answer.

Trust, but Verify

Here’s the part I can’t say loudly enough.

AI is a fast researcher, but it is not a reliable witness. It can confidently cite a study that doesn’t exist or summarize a source it never actually read. It’s a lot better than it used to be, but hallucinations still happen. That’s why both prompts above demand links — so you can click through and confirm the important claims yourself.

I wrote about this in Do the Hard Thing: AI shouldn’t be your primary source of truth. Let it do the gathering and the first-pass synthesis. But the final judgment — especially when money or a big life decision is on the line — is still yours to make.

Treat the briefing as a sharp first draft, not a verdict.

Start Small Today

You don’t need a life-altering decision to try this. Pick something small you’ve been putting off — which budgeting app to use, the best way to get from the airport, whether that subscription is worth keeping — and run one of the prompts above.

Let AI open the tabs so you can spend your energy deciding.

That’s the use case. The hours you used to lose to research can go toward the part only you can do: choosing well.

[!Question] What’s a decision you’ve been putting off because the research felt overwhelming?

Next up: Your daily personal assistant — turning your calendar, inbox, and to-do list into a single morning briefing.