Great question! AI can definitely streamline tasks for small business owners, though our recent survey found that nearly 60% don’t use it. For those who are interested in using AI, here are some that can make a difference: Virtual assistants: Tools like Siri, Alexa or Google Assistant can manage schedules, set reminders and control smart devices, saving you time. AI chatbots: Platforms like Manychat or Tidio handle repetitive customer inquiries, freeing up your time for more complex interactions. Data analysis tools: IBM Watson or Google Looker Studio help make sense of your data with visual reports and actionable insights. Document processing: AI tools automate tasks like invoice processing, reducing manual errors and improving efficiency. Expense trackers: Tools like Expensify streamline financial tracking and organize expenses with ease. Meeting assistants: Apps like Otter.ai record and transcribe meetings, ensuring you focus on what matters during discussions. Insurance solutions: For those in industries requiring Certificates of Insurance (COIs), companies like NEXT have tools that generate COIs instantly, helping you land jobs or submit bids faster. NEXT’s survey shows that small business owners primarily use AI for marketing, customer service and scheduling. If you’re just getting started, focus on tools that address your most time-consuming tasks. We recently had a discussion about it over in another sub: https://www.reddit.com/r/NextInsurance/comments/1ibjxco/2024_survey_data_how_small_businesses_use_ai/ Answer from MattfromNEXT on reddit.com
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/entrepreneur › what are the best ai tools that actually help your business?
r/Entrepreneur on Reddit: What are the best AI tools that ACTUALLY help your business?
March 28, 2024 -

Looking for suggestions for some decent AI tools that actually help increase productivity! Besides the standard ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Midjurney, etc. I'll get the ball rolling-

I recently came across a pretty useful tool on this sub called https://www.talonic.ai/ it basically lets you talk to your database. You can upload a bunch of spreadsheets and ask questions to generate insights or combine certain data into 1 spreadsheet through prompts. I've seen a couple versions of this concept before, but the issue I faced was that the AI would hallucinate a lot with the large amounts of data I threw at it, which hasn't happened here yet. They also surf and get you internet data through prompts but i haven't utilised that feature a lot.

Not sponsored or anything- just something which actually ended up increasing our productivity! Would love to hear about similar tools you're using for your businesses!

Top answer
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Great question! AI can definitely streamline tasks for small business owners, though our recent survey found that nearly 60% don’t use it. For those who are interested in using AI, here are some that can make a difference: Virtual assistants: Tools like Siri, Alexa or Google Assistant can manage schedules, set reminders and control smart devices, saving you time. AI chatbots: Platforms like Manychat or Tidio handle repetitive customer inquiries, freeing up your time for more complex interactions. Data analysis tools: IBM Watson or Google Looker Studio help make sense of your data with visual reports and actionable insights. Document processing: AI tools automate tasks like invoice processing, reducing manual errors and improving efficiency. Expense trackers: Tools like Expensify streamline financial tracking and organize expenses with ease. Meeting assistants: Apps like Otter.ai record and transcribe meetings, ensuring you focus on what matters during discussions. Insurance solutions: For those in industries requiring Certificates of Insurance (COIs), companies like NEXT have tools that generate COIs instantly, helping you land jobs or submit bids faster. NEXT’s survey shows that small business owners primarily use AI for marketing, customer service and scheduling. If you’re just getting started, focus on tools that address your most time-consuming tasks. We recently had a discussion about it over in another sub: https://www.reddit.com/r/NextInsurance/comments/1ibjxco/2024_survey_data_how_small_businesses_use_ai/
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Jasper helps a lot to our content writer, and Sintra ai connects data from different sources like CRM, analytics, and outreach tools, then gives insights through its bots. Super usefull for reporting and spot trends faster.
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Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute
lassonde.utah.edu › home › news › 15 free ai tools for entrepreneurs
15 Free AI Tools for Entrepreneurs | Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute | University of Utah
January 24, 2024 - This tool allows entrepreneurs to focus on their business and avoid scheduling conflicts. ... For entrepreneurs who work with data, Orange Data Mining is worth checking out. Orange is an open visualization and analytics tool that has a range of AI capabilities. Create informative visuals and derive enlightening insights on this free AI tool to improve your business with data-informed decisions.
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The Neuron
theneuron.ai › top-tools
Top AI Tools for Business and Work (Updated 2024)
Infinite marketing/sales videos for your business. ... Generates videos that look real. ... Create AI videos in less than a minute. ... Join 550,000+ professionals from top companies like Disney, Apple and Tesla. 100% Free.
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Capsule CRM
capsulecrm.com › blog › 10-best-free-ai-tools-for-productive-businesses
10+ best free AI tools for businesses
Napkin AI is one of the free tools businesses can use for visual storytelling. It allows users to create diagrams, infographics, and flowcharts with just a few clicks – all without graphic design expertise or designers on board.
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Upmetrics
upmetrics.co › business plan software › 10 best ai business plan generators (tried & tested) – 2025
10 Best AI Business Plan Generators (Free & Paid) - Save Time
September 26, 2025 - But free also signals what the tool is: A lightweight entry point. You’ll get structure, but not detailed forecasts, scenario testing, or customization. If you want a full business plan with investor-ready financials and all the advanced features, the upgrade path is clear: move to the Premium plan, starting at $14 per month. Bizplanr does what an AI ...
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Thryv Canada
thryv.ca › home › blog home › 11 free ai tools for small business owners
Free AI Tools: 11 For Small Business Owners
March 27, 2025 - While the best AI tools for your company depend on a variety of factors, here are our top picks based on the categories provided above: Best Free AI Tools for Small Business: Thryv Online Presence Scanner, ChatGPT
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ClarkConnect
clarkconnect.com › software
Which AI tools actually help your business grow? - Software - ClarkConnect Forum
April 19, 2025 - I’m trying to level up my business efficiency and results, but there are so many AI tools out there that it’s overwhelming. Has anyone found any AI tools that are truly useful for business operations, marketing, or produ…
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IT Pro
itpro.com › home › technology › artificial intelligence
The best AI tools for business to try today | IT Pro
September 5, 2023 - This makes it a useful tool not only for job seekers but also for executives, managers, and students who want to refine their presence before stepping into a live room.​​ · Yoodli follows a freemium model, with a no-cost tier that lets individuals try a limited number of AI “scenarios” and get a feel for the feedback engine, and paid plans that unlock unlimited practice, deeper analytics, and enhanced privacy controls.
Find elsewhere
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Zapier
zapier.com › app picks › best apps
The best AI productivity tools in 2026 | Zapier
February 15, 2023 - Learn more about Zapier Agents, and then get started for free. ... Botpress isn't hard to use, exactly, but it's definitely built with developers in mind. You'll likely spend more time reading the documentation here than with most AI tools, ...
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Viceversa
goviceversa.com › home › 16 free ai tools to supercharge your startup
16 best free AI tools for founders and digital businesses
September 26, 2024 - PrometAI stands as one of the best free AI tools for business plan creation, transforming how entrepreneurs and startup founders approach the critical tasks of preparing business plans and valuation materials. With an intuitive interface, PrometAI simplifies complex processes like financial planning and business valuation, making them accessible to a broad audience.
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Marketer Milk
marketermilk.com › blog › ai-marketing-tools
26 best AI marketing tools I'm using to get ahead in 2025 | Marketer Milk
August 18, 2025 - If you’re looking for a real AI marketing tool, this is it. They’re not paying me to say this, but I reached out to Max, the CEO of Gumloop, and he gave me a 20% off coupon code to give to my readers (Code: MARKETERMILK). I love the tool so much I went to San Francisco to meet the team and took this photo of myself in their office (lol). Anyways, it's a great tool and the free plan is super generours.
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Synthesia
synthesia.io › home › synthesia blog › the 45 best ai tools for 2025 (tried and tested)
The 45 Best AI Tools in 2025 (Tried & Tested)
1 month ago - While Synthesia shines for AI talking head video generation, it’s not designed for storytelling or cinematic visuals. It’s best for teams and businesses that prioritize speed, professionalism, and brand consistency in their video production workflows. Synthesia offers a free plan that allows ...
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Simplilearn
simplilearn.com › home › resources › ai & machine learning › the top 10 ai tools for business in 2026
The Top 10 AI Tools for Business in 2026
October 31, 2023 - Unleash the power of AI in 2025 to transform your business: discover the top 10 game-changing AI tools for customer service, sales forecasting, and more!
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ReTable
retable.io › blog › 7-free-ai-tools-you-should-know-in-2025
Top 7 Free AI Tools for 2025 You Don't Want to Miss |Retable
January 17, 2025 - There are now several free AI copywriting tools available online, such as Copy.ai and ChatGPT, which use machine learning algorithms to generate high-quality copy in seconds like a professional copywriter.
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HubSpot
blog.hubspot.com › sales › small-business-ai-tools
AI for small businesses: 22 essential tools for real business growth
October 20, 2025 - The free plan includes planning and publishing tools, the landing page builder, and Buffer’s AI Assistant for up to three social media channels. Marketers can also schedule 10 posts at a time per channel, which is amazing for a free plan. Best for: Solos and small teams on 1-3 channels. Price: Free plan available. What I like: It’s so affordable. If you’re a small business...
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Storychief
storychief.io › blog › ai-tools-for-business
20 Best AI Tools for Business in 2025
September 30, 2025 - Pricing: VoiceNotes offers a free plan, as well as paid plans starting at $10/month. Lifetime payment options are also available. Chatbase is a conversational AI tool that enables businesses to create intelligent chatbots and virtual assistants that can handle a wide range of customer inquiries and support requests.
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YouTube
youtube.com › watch
I Tested 500+ AI Tools, These 12 Will Blow Up Your Business - YouTube
✅ Get access to my Executive Assistant Playbook: https://go.danmartell.com/47iE3VW👥 Are you building an AI software company? Partner with me: https://go.dan...
Published   October 31, 2025
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Mailmodo
mailmodo.com › home › guides › ai tools for small businesses
32 Best AI Tools for Small Businesses to Thrive Smarter in 2025
November 17, 2025 - Just enter some basic business details and answer strategic and foundational questions for this tool to create a business plan from scratch. Whether you want to secure an investment, validate a business idea, document your operations, or launch your startup—Bizplanr can prepare a business plan for all sorts of purpose. It's easy to use and absolutely free without any hidden costs. ... CustomGPT.ai is an AI tool designed to help businesses create personalized chatbots with ease.
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Forbes
forbes.com › sites › terdawn-deboe › 2025 › 10 › 27 › 15-free-ai-alternatives-to-premium-business-tools
15 Free AI Alternatives To Premium Business Tools
October 27, 2025 - Discover 15 free AI tools for small business that replace premium subscriptions. Test customer service, marketing, and admin automation before investing.