Published Apr 25, 2026, 10:30 AM EDT Beatrice Manuel is a productivity expert specializing in apps and tools that help readers work smarter. With a triple degree in Commerce, Accounting, and Insurance, she brings a practical edge to her insights. I expected to consolidate my AI stack after subscribing to Google AI Pro, thinking it could act as one subscription to replace three tools (Claude, Perplexity, and ChatGPT). Two months in, I'm still using all three on top of Google AI Pro. While it unlocked genuinely impressive features, I learned that having access to better tools doesn't automatically mean they fit how I actually think and work. Here's what changed and what didn't. Deep Research is legitimately different It handles multi-step synthesis better than search Deep Research breaks down complex queries into multi-point research plans, autonomously searches the web, and synthesizes findings into comprehensive multi-page reports in just 5–10 minutes.…