Hands-On ClickUp AI Review 2024 [With Samples]

Ever since the launch of ClickUp AI, I’ve heard some very conflicting opinions about it – so I finally made the time to review it myself. Since I know ClickUp as one of the best task management tools, I was eager to see how they integrated artificial intelligence into their already robust platform.

My focus was on evaluating the practicality, efficiency, and intuitiveness of ClickUp’s new smart assistant in enhancing productivity and simplifying everyday tasks.

In this ClickUp AI review, I will:

• share insights into its new tools and features,
• show you some samples of the output quality ClickUp AI assistant generates,
• explain how it can fit into your daily workflow, whether you’re managing complex projects or juggling multiple tasks.

AI Assistant

ClickUp AI Overview

4.6

• Summarize tasks, chats & notes
• Generate subtasks and action items
• Access AI wherever you work
• Draft documents and SOPs
• Generate creative ideas

Learn More

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Quick summary of my experience with ClickUp AI

ClickUp AI really stands out in the world of project management tools. It’s clear that this company understands the needs of its users, and with each update, attempts to simplify our daily work routine and find alternative ways to do various things in order to boost productivity.

After using ClickUp’s AI assistant for a while, my favorite thing is quick summarization, which seems to work well in all cases, whether it’s summarizing all the activity for a particular task or making sense of random notes I’ve taken when watching something.

What’s cool about ClickUp AI is that all AI tools are categorized by role, which means that your team members don’t have to learn all the possible use cases – just the ones that apply to their job, whether it’s sales, HR, engineering, or product management.

Also, there is no need to be tech-savvy or understand the nuances of prompting, which is usually the case with ChatGPT and other general AI chatbots. ClickUp made things super easy with pre-defined AI templates that have detailed, well-written prompts under the hood.

Sure, there were a couple of things that weren’t quite where I wanted them – but it’s understandable since it’s only the first version of Clickup AI, and the app itself is loaded with features.

The way this company keeps updating and adding new features, I’m pretty sure they’ll sort these small issues out in no time, especially with all our feedback based on real-life scenarios.

To wrap it up, I’m pretty wowed by ClickUp’s smart use of AI and how straightforward it is to use. If you spend a lot of time every day in ClickUp, you’ll love exploring all the ways it can save you bits of time now!

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What is ClickUp AI?

ClickUp AI is a new feature of the ClickUp project management tool that helps you save a lot of time by automating a bunch of your routine tasks. It’s meant to be utilized as a smart assistant that can summarize tasks and notes, create quick drafts for your content or documents, generate creative ideas, and help out with most of your common everyday jobs.

ClickUp AI was introduced in late 2023 as part of the massive ClickUp 3.0 update. (Read my ClickUp 3.0 review to learn more about new features and improvements compared to 2.0.)

Here is a quick and fun ClickUp AI demo to get an initial feel of its capabilities:

Who is ClickUp AI for?

Anyone who wants to streamline their workflow can benefit from using ClickUp AI assistant, whether you are a solopreneur or a huge team with several departments. Basically, every office job has some areas where a lot of time is wasted on repeated work, and AI can help minimize that.

All ClickUp AI tools are created with specific project roles in mind, for example:

• If you’re a project manager, ClickUp AI can help you generate subtasks, meeting agendas, or project briefs in a snap.
• If you’re in sales, it will help you quickly write a case study or an elevator pitch, draft emails, or even personalize your email template.
• For the HR team, it can assist in creating job descriptions, drafting internal announcements and onboarding materials, or designing performance reviews.

Basically, it’s a versatile tool that can adapt to a wide range of needs and roles, making life easier for just about anyone who’s juggling multiple tasks in their day-to-day work. Check out more of its features and uses here.

How to use ClickUp AI

Since ClickUp AI is not a standalone tool of the task manager but an internal mechanism integrated into all areas of the app, there are multiple ways you can access and use it.

Here is a quick ClickUp AI tutorial with the most common ways to use it.

1. Via text command

The fastest way to access ClickUp AI assistant without losing focus on what you’re doing is to just type “/ai” in any place where you can type.

You’ll immediately see the “Write with AI” tool and sometimes several other AI options, depending on where you are.

If you just type a slash “/” instead, you’ll see a lot of suggestions with familiar tools and markup options, and AI tools will also be among them.

It’s easy to differentiate between AI and non-AI tools because the former have the same AI icon indicator everywhere in ClickUp 3.0.

2. Via highlighting text

Another intuitive way to use ClickUp AI is to highlight a section of the text you want the assistant to work with and click the AI icon that is now a part of the toolbar.

Here are some things AI assistant can do with your selection:

• Improve writing – I noticed this is a favorite for many people.
• Simplify writing – This is my personal favorite because I tend to write long, complicated sentences sometimes that can be simplified or split into two.
• Make longer or shorter – I think this one is self-explanatory.
• Continue writing – Expand on your existing thought or add more ideas.
• Generate action items – A great way to summarize the results of a meeting or a long document in an actionable way.
• Explain this – Useful for difficult concepts, especially for new team members.
• Translate – At the time of writing this ClickUp AI review, I see 12 languages available to me in this scenario.

3. Via global search

With the latest 3.0 update, ClickUp introduced a global search bar at the top, and there is also an AI button in there next to the search.

This is really convenient because it allows you to quickly do something with AI, find something related to your current task, or create a new task or document without switching away from the screen you are currently working on.

When you click on the AI button, it brings up a popup where you can access all the AI templates. There is a dropdown with the most common categories of jobs to choose from, such as HR, Email, Product, or Support.

You can also just type a command here and press Enter without choosing a template, just like you would with any chatbot.

After AI generates the output, you have several options for what to do with it:

• Create a new task with this output as a description
• Create a new doc based on the generated content
• Copy the output to paste it in your current document or outside of ClickUp
• Edit inputs to improve your prompt if the output is not exactly what you had in mind
• Regenerate if you don’t like the output or want more ideas

Key ClickUp AI tools & features

Since we now know how to use ClickUp AI effectively, let’s take a closer look at some of the prominent ClickUp AI tools and what I was able to generate with my new smart assistant.

1. Summarize anything

One of the most notable features of ClickUp AI is its ability to summarize pretty much anything – documents, meeting notes, you name it. Your AI assistant quickly sifts through loads of information and gives you the gist in no time.

This feature alone has the potential to save you hours that you would have spent reading through lengthy reports. It can also summarize meeting notes after a long brainstorming session, identify the key points, and generate action items.

It’s fantastic for those who need a quick recap or weren’t able to attend the meeting.

Summarize tasks & conversations

One really useful use case I found for the summarization feature is summarizing tasks and recent activity on the projects. This is particularly useful when you have a bigger team, and conversations get lengthy sometimes.

Besides the obvious place (task details screen), you will find AI summarization buttons for threads in the Inbox and tasks or documents in the sidebar.

If you click on AI in the task sidebar, it can summarize either the whole task or give you an update status based on the recent progress for a specified time period.

Here is an example of how it summarized one of my tasks:

This AI feature makes life easier both for a new team member who joins the project and for a director who wants a quick update on a particular feature development.

Especially for busy projects with loads of chat threads, it helps you stay updated without having to scroll through endless messages. Just a quick summary, and you are all caught up.

Using ClickUp’s summarization feature is about working smarter, not harder, and it stands as a clear example of the power of using AI for your daily productivity.

2. Generate subtasks and action items

Since ClickUp is a task management app, it’s not a surprise that its AI assistant is good at breaking down tasks.

If you haven’t switched to 3.0 yet, they redesigned the Task screen, so we now have Subtasks and Action Items as tabs under the task description, and there is also a left subtasks sidebar for easy navigation. (You can read more about 3.0 updates in this article.)

When you are on the Subtasks tab, there is a Generate button (with our familiar AI icon) that automatically generates a list of subtasks based on the task name and description.

You can then uncheck any subtasks that may seem redundant (AI can sometimes do that) and create the rest of the tasks.

This is a great example of streamlining daily work with AI and making better use of your task management skills.

While AI can’t get inside your head and know exactly how you imagine it, it does a pretty good job, close to what an average assistant would do. And unless you are inventing something that never existed before, the steps needed to complete a project will be pretty straightforward in most cases.

3. Generate email drafts

Email generation is another area where ClickUp AI shines. It’s incredibly handy for drafting emails quickly.

Whether it’s a follow-up email, a project update, or a proposal, ClickUp AI can generate a draft in seconds based on the template you choose and the bits of information you fill in.

As opposed to ChatGPT, who starts each email with “I hope this email finds you well” unless you explicitly tell it not to, ClickUp seems to be pre-taught to write in a succinct way where it makes sense.

This is another huge timesaver if you don’t use any other email generators.

This tool understands the nuances of tone and context, making the emails it generates feel personal and well thought out, not just automated responses like that generic stuff you often get from chatbots.

4. Draft product documentation

Writing various product documents is one of the most time-consuming tasks ever, and if you work in a big company, it can even take days to do one of these properly.

With ClickUp’s assistant, you can save an incredible amount of time by letting it draft the initial version of each document. Even in the worst-case scenario, if it misses the point and explains something in the wrong way, it creates a well-structured template for you to fill in with more details.

This is much faster than creating a document from scratch. It also eliminates writer’s block and analysis paralysis that happen when you sit in front of a huge task and don’t know where to start.

The best thing? ClickUp AI is trained on the most common use cases, such as writing product requirements, documenting a design component, or outlining technical specifications.

It knows the typical structure of each document, proper markup, and how to present the information in the most readable way, whether it’s with a list or a table.

5. Write with AI

The ‘Write with AI’ feature in ClickUp is like a general tool for writing anything that doesn’t fit within templates.

Sample 1 – Analyzing my audience

To test its capabilities, I asked it to identify the pain points of my audience.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that you can choose the creativity level – most AI generators don’t offer that, and therefore, the answers are pretty generic every time.

Though on point, ClickUp’s output was still a bit general in this case, so I had to update my prompt with additional details to get more insights. Still, it’s good for brainstorming when you feel stuck or out of ideas.

Sample 2 – Quick research

Another fun test I did was asking ClickUp AI to write about the coolest Harry Potter-themed places in the world.

The suggestions were not only factually correct, but a couple even made it to my personal bucket list!

I also like how it writes – I chose the straightforward tone because that’s how I write myself, and it did a good job here, close to how I would write about it (minus the personality).

6. Generate ideas

When it comes to creative brainstorming, ClickUp AI also offers several tools that many might find helpful.

Some of the available use cases:

• Ideate potential solutions
• Create campaign ideas
• Brainstorm potential user journeys
• Generate blog titles
• Ideate quarterly OKRs

Brainstorming with AI is perfect for those moments when you’re looking for fresh perspectives or a spark of inspiration. Or just don’t want to start with a clean slate.

As a test, I asked it to create campaign ideas, and I set Creativity to High.

It generated some interesting ideas, including several that I wouldn’t think of myself.

The best part is the ‘regenerate’ option, allowing you to explore a wide range of ideas with just a click.

ClickUp AI pricing

ClickUp AI can be added to any paid plan for an extra $5 a month (see how to add it in the next section).

Unfortunately, it’s not available for free accounts besides the initial trial.

Can I access ClickUp AI for free?

Yes, as a matter of fact, you can! Regardless of your current plan, you can get a free trial of the AI assistant before you commit to paying for it.

The free trial is not time-limited. Instead, it has AI usage limits depending on your plan:

• Free Forever: 25 uses
• Unlimited or Business: 50 uses
• Business Plus or Enterprise: 100 uses

How to get access to ClickUp AI

There are several ways to access ClickUp AI if it’s not activated in your workspace yet:

1. Go to the ClickUp AI introduction page and click Try it for free.
2. Go to Settings -> Billing in your ClickUp workspace, locate ClickUp AI, and click Add To Plan.
3. Go to the ClickApps page via workspace settings or the top search bar. Locate AI (in my account, it’s the first item you see) and click the toggle to enable it.

When you successfully add the AI addon, you’ll see this celebratory message:

And you’ll soon start noticing several additional AI buttons all over the interface.

Final verdict: Is ClickUp AI worth it?

I had high expectations for ClickUp AI after so many long months of waiting for it – and it did not disappoint. Based on my tests, ClickUp has the potential to save you several hours every week, which makes it absolutely worth an extra $5 per month.

To me, the best features of ClickUp AI assistant are quick summarization, auto-generating subtasks, and email writing use cases.

I also appreciate the 100+ pre-prompted templates tailored to different roles. Whether you’re in sales, HR, management, or any other department, you get the specific tools that are relevant to your daily work.

Overall, ClickUp AI is a smart and easy-to-use assistant that is helpful for automating everyday tasks, especially if you aren’t tech-savvy.

Overall Rating:

4.6 / 5

Pros

• AI is integrated all over ClickUp
• Smart role-based templates
• Huge time saver
• Great at summarizing things
• Generates subtasks well
• Improves your writing
• Good for brainstorming

Cons

• Not available for free users
• Some random UX glitches, such as losing focus when typing something
• Doesn’t always get what you want from the 1st attempt (like any AI, really)
• Output for some use cases is a bit generic (but I didn’t expect them ALL to be great)

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