Best AI for chatbots and RAG

Build an assistant that answers from your own docs — from no-code to custom code.

This featured slot is available to tool makers who fit this use case. Clearly labeled, always separate from our picks.

Our picks

1. ChatGPT
OpenAI's general-purpose AI assistant with chat, images, voice and search.
Verdict: Top pick to start: a Custom GPT with uploaded files takes minutes. Skip it if you need it on your own site.
2. Claude
Anthropic's AI assistant, strong at long documents, writing and code.
Verdict: Claude Projects are great for an internal team assistant grounded in your docs.
3. LlamaIndex
Open-source framework focused on connecting LLMs to your documents and data (RAG).
Verdict: Best code framework when the hard part is ingesting and retrieving your data well.
4. LangChain
Open-source framework for building LLM apps: RAG, tools and integrations.
Verdict: Biggest ecosystem of integrations; more abstraction than you may need for simple bots.
5. Cursor
AI-first code editor (VS Code fork) with chat, inline edits and an agent mode.
Verdict: Have it write a lean custom RAG app, and use MCP to connect it to your tools.
6. NotebookLM
Google's research notebook grounded in your own uploaded sources.
Verdict: Zero-setup grounded Q&A over your sources, for personal use rather than embedding.

Picks are editorial and not paid. Pricing and features change often — check each official site.