Using Al in Academic Research

Using Al in Academic Research#

AI can already speed up research by finding sources, summarising content, and comparing studies. It can also highlight similarities, differences, and gaps between pieces of evidence far faster than a human. In the future, AI will continue to handle more of this side of research. It will search across thousands of sources instantly, map out how ideas connect, suggest new questions, design possible methods, and even carry out parts of the analysis. In some fields, AI could run simulations, model scenarios, and produce visual summaries of the results. Nevertheless, humans will remain essential for setting the research goals, making ethical decisions, and ensuring the final work meets academic standards. This will make research faster and more comprehensive, but the focus for humans will shift from manually gathering and sorting information to guiding the research process, interpreting meaning, and telling the story of the findings.

How can you already begin using AI for academic research today#

For now, start with smaller, low-risk uses that can be tested, refined, and expanded as you build experience:

  • A. Search and compare – Use AI to refine search terms, suggest related concepts, and compare key points from multiple sources.

  • B. Summarise and organise – Get AI to create concise, bullet-point summaries from abstracts or excerpts, grouping similar findings together.

  • C. Map and spot gaps – Ask AI to show where research overlaps, where results differ, and which areas are under-studied.

  • D. Method feedback – Share a draft research plan with AI to get possible improvements, alternative designs, or suggestions for additional variables.

AI tools in literature reviews#

Literature reviews play an important role in academic research. For a comprehensive overview of using AI tools specifically for literature reviews, refer to the guide written by Lisanne Walma and Matthijs Looij from TU Delft. This resource provides practical guidance on which tools work best for specific tasks and how to use them effectively throughout the review process.

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