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3 Unbelievable AI Technologies to Automate Your Literature Review thumbnail

3 Unbelievable AI Technologies to Automate Your Literature Review

Andy Stapleton·
5 min read

Based on Andy Stapleton's video on YouTube. If you like this content, support the original creators by watching, liking and subscribing to their content.

TL;DR

Wiio helps turn a topic prompt into draft literature-review text and limited reference suggestions, but references still require manual checking.

Briefing

Automating a literature review is increasingly practical: three tools can generate draft text, suggest references, and help researchers extract key points from papers—cutting the time spent on repetitive writing and scanning. The biggest payoff comes from combining “draft generation” with “reference and evidence support,” so the work shifts from blank-page effort to editing, verification, and synthesis.

The first tool, Wiio, is positioned as “writing science powered by AI.” After creating a project (for example, a systematic review on “transparent electrode materials”), users can generate AI suggestions for paragraphs, refine grammar, translate to English, and—crucially—pull in references. The workflow is built around starting from a short prompt, then repeatedly selecting AI-generated text that can be copied and pasted into the growing review. Wiio also surfaces common materials relevant to the topic, such as ITO (indium tin oxide) and zinc oxide, as part of building the review’s substance. References can be generated for free, but the transcript emphasizes that they must be checked rather than accepted blindly, and that the free reference suggestions are limited (described as a small set of reference lists and supporting items).

The second tool, Jenny AI, is presented as a more direct “write the literature review for me” option. After logging in and starting a new document with a prompt like “transparent electrode materials,” it begins producing paragraphs immediately, continuing to expand the literature narrative without requiring the user to manually draft every sentence. Jenny AI also supports citation insertion: users highlight text, request citations, and receive reference suggestions across multiple journal or website formats. The transcript notes multiple citation styles, including an IEEE-style option where bracketed numbers appear in the text and corresponding entries appear at the bottom. Beyond drafting and citations, Jenny AI includes a chat-style feature (“Ask Jenny”) that can generate section headings and perform document-level tasks such as analysis, functioning like a research-oriented assistant.

The third tool, OpenRead, is framed as a paper-first automation aid. It’s described as “very new” and “temperamental,” but potentially powerful. Users can upload or locate papers, then quickly scan them—especially via a feature that lets users “talk to the papers” and extract highlights. The transcript describes a “paper espresso” style grab that summarizes key points (including abstract and figure-related context) that can be copied into a literature review and then rewritten in the user’s own words. OpenRead can work even without importing PDFs, by finding papers and then allowing users to bring in their own documents if desired.

Taken together, the tools target three bottlenecks in literature reviews: drafting coherent text, managing citations and structure, and extracting evidence quickly from papers. The transcript repeatedly returns to one guardrail—references should be verified—while pitching Jenny AI as the most immediately impressive for producing review-ready prose and OpenRead as the fastest route to paper-level summaries.

Cornell Notes

The transcript argues that literature reviews can be automated by combining three complementary tools: Wiio for AI-assisted drafting and reference suggestions, Jenny AI for rapid paragraph generation plus citation formatting and section-building via chat, and OpenRead for fast paper scanning and extracting highlights. Wiio helps users start with a topic prompt (e.g., transparent electrode materials), generate draft text, and retrieve a limited set of references that still require manual checking. Jenny AI generates longer review text quickly, supports citation insertion in multiple styles including IEEE-style bracketed numbering, and offers an “Ask Jenny” chat feature for headings and document tasks. OpenRead focuses on evidence: it summarizes papers and lets users copy “highlights” into their review, with the option to upload PDFs or rely on paper search. This matters because it shifts effort from blank-page writing to editing and synthesis.

How does Wiio turn a literature review topic into usable draft text and references?

Wiio starts with creating a project and entering a prompt such as “transparent electrode materials,” then selecting a review type like “systematic review.” Users can highlight their sentence and request AI suggestions, which produce paragraph-ready text that can be copied into the review. The tool also offers grammar correction and translation to English. For evidence, it can generate references (described as free but limited), and it can surface commonly used materials relevant to the topic—e.g., ITO (indium tin oxide) and zinc oxide. The transcript stresses that references must be checked rather than accepted automatically.

What makes Jenny AI feel different from Wiio in the drafting workflow?

Jenny AI is presented as more “hands-off” for writing. After starting a new document with a prompt, it begins generating the literature narrative immediately and continues expanding it without the user manually building each sentence. It also supports citations by letting users highlight text and request citations, then selecting reference outputs across different journal or website formats. Citation style options include IEEE-style formatting, where bracketed numbers appear in the text and full entries appear at the bottom. A chat feature (“Ask Jenny”) can generate section headings and help analyze the document, functioning like a research assistant.

How does OpenRead speed up the evidence-gathering part of a literature review?

OpenRead is described as a tool for scanning and extracting from papers quickly. After finding or uploading a paper, it provides a fast way to review key information such as abstract and figures. It includes a “paper espresso” style grab that summarizes highlights from the paper, which users can copy into their literature review and then rewrite to make the text their own. The transcript also notes that it can work by finding papers without necessarily importing PDFs first, though users can import their own PDFs if they want.

Why does the transcript repeatedly warn users to verify references?

Even though the tools can generate reference lists and citation suggestions, the transcript emphasizes that users still need to check references manually. The reason is practical: AI-generated citations can be incomplete or incorrect, and the free reference outputs (especially in Wiio) are described as limited. The workflow is framed as drafting and retrieval support, not a replacement for scholarly verification.

What citation capabilities are highlighted across the tools?

Wiio can generate references alongside draft text, but the transcript describes the free reference suggestions as limited and requires user verification. Jenny AI is more explicit about citation insertion: users highlight text, request citations, and receive options across multiple reference styles, including IEEE-style bracketed numbering. OpenRead focuses less on citation formatting and more on extracting paper highlights that can then be incorporated into the review, with users responsible for making the final text and citations fit their work.

Review Questions

  1. Which tool in the transcript is most focused on generating review-ready prose immediately, and what citation style example is mentioned for it?
  2. What specific features does OpenRead provide for extracting paper highlights, and how does that change the literature review workflow?
  3. How do Wiio and Jenny AI differ in how they build a literature review from a prompt, and what common caution is given about references?

Key Points

  1. 1

    Wiio helps turn a topic prompt into draft literature-review text and limited reference suggestions, but references still require manual checking.

  2. 2

    Jenny AI generates longer review paragraphs quickly and supports citation insertion with multiple styles, including IEEE-style bracketed numbering.

  3. 3

    Jenny AI’s “Ask Jenny” chat feature can generate section headings and assist with document-level tasks like analysis.

  4. 4

    OpenRead accelerates evidence gathering by letting users scan papers and extract copy-ready highlights (e.g., via a “paper espresso” grab).

  5. 5

    OpenRead can summarize papers without requiring PDF import first, though users can upload PDFs if they prefer.

  6. 6

    The most efficient workflow combines AI drafting with verification and rewriting so the final literature review reflects the researcher’s own synthesis.

Highlights

Wiio can generate draft paragraphs and reference suggestions from a short prompt, including topic-specific materials like ITO and zinc oxide—but the transcript stresses verification.
Jenny AI is portrayed as the fastest route to review-ready prose, with citation insertion that supports IEEE-style bracketed numbering.
OpenRead shifts the focus from writing to evidence extraction, offering quick paper scanning and highlight grabs that can be copied into a literature review.

Topics

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