Learning and Development (L&D) is continuously evolving and artificial intelligence (AI) is playing an increasingly significant role in shaping its future. One way it’s doing this is through streamlined workflows.

There are many AI tools available today, but the stand out for developing L&D materials is still ChatGPT - especially when we leverage plugins.

Getting Started with ChatGPT Plugins

ChatGPT plugins are free to use, but they do require a plus subscription. To get started with plugins:

• Open your ChatGPT settings
• Go to Beta features
• Turn on plugins
• Open a new conversation
• Select GPT-4 and choose plugins
• Open the plugin store to install your plugins of choice

Each time you start a new conversation, you can enable up to three of your downloaded plugins. If you want to use a different plugin, you will need to start a new conversation.

Six ChatGPT Plugins for Learning & Development

Here are six ChatGPT plugins L&D professionals and instructional designers can use to enhance their workflows.

1. Visla: Simplifying Video Creation

In today's digital age, video content is a common part of any learning experience. Visla is a plugin that can help you quickly create simple videos with ease.

For instance, let's say you're developing an e-learning module on Workplace Ethics. You could use Visla to create short explainer videos for each topic, a course introduction, or even a recap of previous sessions - all with a simple ChatGPT prompt.

2. ChatWithPDF: Making Document Interaction Seamless

PDFs are a staple in most training programs. But how often have we struggled with navigating through lengthy documents? ChatWithPDFcan help. Similar to other AI tools like the ChatPDF web tool, you can use it to interact with any PDF. By using a plugin, you don’t have to leave ChatGPT and can use it with other plugins to make the most of your workflow.

For example, imagine you have a long course manual in a PDF format. With ChatWithPDF, you can interact with the document as if you were having a chat conversation. Want to find all references to a particular concept? Just ask. Need a summary of Chapter 3? The plugin can do that too.

This tool transforms the way we interact with PDFs, making it easy to find relevant information, extract key points, or even generate discussion questions for learners.

3. WebPilot: Information at Your Fingertips

WebPilot is a tool that is invaluable for L&D. It enables real-time access to the internet to find, analyze, and use the information. Accuracy is key with learning materials. Having a way to easily verify the outputs ChatGPT provides you helps ensure the training content is not just accurate, but also up-to-date.

4. Video Insights: Maximizing Value from Video Content

The internet is full of educational video content and tutorials. With Video Insights, you can extract more value from these resources. This plugin provides summaries, key points, and more from YouTube videos and other sources.

For example, if you're incorporating a TED Talk into your Leadership Development program, you can use Video Insights to identify the most relevant sections, highlight key points, and foster focused discussions.

5. ChatOCR: Turning Images into Text

Ever stumbled upon a great infographic or a printed document with valuable information that you wanted to use in your training materials? Enter ChatOCR.

This powerful plugin can extract text from images and scanned PDFs. OpenAI hasn't released image-based prompting yet but this plugin gets us a step closer.

6. MemoryBank: Your Personal Knowledge Repository

Finally, we have MemoryBank, a tool that extends ChatGPT's memory by storing information externally. It can store, search, and retrieve information - a crucial feature for managing and recalling details about different training sessions, processes, and more.

Runner Ups

There are over 400 plugins available in the ChatGPT plugin store. Here are a few more to consider:

• ShowMeDiagrams: This tool can be used to create various diagrams through simple text instructions, which can assist in creating flowcharts, process diagrams, and other visual representations to enhance training materials.
• PhotoRealistic: Provides mid-journey prompts for generating photorealistic images.
• AI News Roundup: 🌟 One of my personal favorites - Get a daily roundup of the latest AI news and articles from around the world right at your fingertips.

Combining ChatGPT Plugins to Optimize L&D Workflows

The ability to seamlessly transition between different tasks – creating content, researching, analyzing learner feedback – is essential to a successful L&D professional's role.

One of the features that makes ChatGPT so powerful is the ability to use up to three plugins in a single conversation. This allows for streamlined workflows, helping you transition between different tasks effortlessly.

Let's say you're preparing a training session on "Data Privacy Best Practices". You have a PDF guide, infographic images, and you need some recent statistics about data breaches.

ChatWithPDF: You start with uploading the PDF guide into the ChatWithPDF plugin. You ask the plugin to find all instances of "Data Encryption". The plugin quickly provides all the occurrences of the term, making it easier for you to highlight this point in your training.

ChatOCR: Now, you want to use some information from multiple infographic images. You use ChatOCR to extract the text and statistics from the image. This allows you to easily repurpose the extracted information into your training material.

WebPilot: Finally, you want to share some recent statistics about data breaches. You ask WebPilot to fetch the most recent data about data breaches from trusted sources. In a few moments, you have the most updated information to make your training more relevant and timely.

Whether it's creating engaging learning content or finding and analyzing data, ChatGPT plugins can help you optimize your L&D workflow.