Elicit AI: A Promising Research Assistant for the Modern Scholar?

The current surge in artificial intelligence is generating considerable excitement, with many believing that these advancements will transform various professional fields. Elicit AIis one such tool, positioning itself as a powerful research assistant designed to streamline literature reviews and accelerate research proposal development. This article explores the potential benefits and limitations of Elicit AI, analyzing its impact on researchers and the broader academic landscape.

Elicit AI in Action: Uncovering Hidden Connections

One of Elicit AI's key strengths lies in its capacity to identify connections between research areas that might be missed through traditional search methods. For example, a researcher co-editing a book on teachers listening to multilingual students used Elicit AI to find articles related to "student voice" that conventional search engines like Google Scholar and EBSCOhost had overlooked.

Elicit AI's intelligent algorithms recognized that listening to students inherently involves their voice, leading to the discovery of a relevant subfield within education research. This ability to uncover meaningful synonyms and related research terms represents a significant leap forward in research capabilities as AI evolves.

Streamlining the Literature Review Process

Beyond identifying connections, Elicit AI offers several features designed to expedite the literature review process:

• Condensing Abstracts: Elicit AI summarizes dense abstracts into concise single sentences, allowing researchers to quickly assess the relevance of a paper.
• Identifying Relevant Articles: The "Show me more like these" function helps refine search results by identifying articles similar to those that are starred as relevant.
• Seamless Integration with Zotero: Elicit AI allows users to download search results as a .bib file, which can then be automatically uploaded into reference management tools like Zotero, as a well-organized folder.

This combination of Elicit AI and Zotero represents a potent toolset for researchers, saving time and effort in the crucial stages of literature gathering and citation.

Democratizing Access to Scholarly Research?

Elicit AI could also democratize access to scholarly research by making it more accessible. The ability to easily query scholarly research without extensive keyword knowledge or familiarity with disciplinary webs could be invaluable to emerging researchers and those outside of highly specialized fields. Similarly, the ability to organize and cite research without needing extensive knowledge of style/publication guides could greatly improve research efficiency.

Limitations and Potential Biases of Elicit AI

Despite its promising features, Elicit AI is not without its limitations. The tool relies on access to full research articles, and the lack of open access research can be a barrier for some researchers. Furthermore, Elicit AI's algorithms, like any AI system, reflect the inherent biases of their creators and users. This raises concerns that the tool could inadvertently reinforce existing hierarchies within scholarship.

Additionally, Elicit AI currently sources its data from the Semantic Scholar API, which encompasses approximately 50-60% of the sources indexed by Google Scholar, as stated in this video. This means that Elicit AI is not yet a comprehensive research tool, and researchers may need to supplement their searches with other databases to ensure a thorough literature review.

The Future of AI-Assisted Research

Elicit AI's ability to identify synonyms, streamline literature reviews, and integrate with reference management tools holds considerable promise for researchers. While challenges related to access, bias, and data comprehensiveness remain, Elicit AI represents an exciting step forward in the evolution of AI-assisted research. As Elicit AI's capabilities expand, it has the potential to enhance research productivity, democratize research access, and facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration for scholars across all levels of experience. Consider exploring other tools like Consensus AI for an even broader research perspective.