Google has been busy with its forages into the world of AI with various tools. Now, the company has released another experimental tool called 'Learn About' to aid users in their learning efforts. If your first reaction is thinking that when NotebookLM or Gemini exist, what's the need for a new learning tool, that's understandable. However, there are differences between both.

Learn About is built on Google's new LearnLM model that the company released earlier this year. It has its base in research and educational data to specifically foster learning.

The model, while based on the same family of LLM models as Gemini, was built not just to be an expert in subjects but also to present answers that "inspire engagement". Indeed, trying Learn About was drastically different than Gemini or other chatbots in how engaging the experience felt.

Learn About includes a lot of visual and interactive elements, like images, videos, diagrams, annotated text, interactive lists, suggested topics, and even textbook-style boxes for additional context and enhanced vocabulary. You'll get different elements depending on the requirement of the topic.

Google says that the tool has also been fine-tuned to create personalized lessons according to an individual's learning style. So, the more you use the tool, the lessons will likely become more suitable to your style.

Note: Learn About is currently only available in the US (you might be able to try it with a VPN). It's also available as an experiment, so there's a possibility you'll need to join a waitlist before you're given access (I didn't have to but my colleague did; it's probably to do with the fact whether you've ever before joined a Google experimental waitlist)

Using Learn About

  1. Go to the website for Learn About and click on the 'Try Learn About' button. (If you can't see this button, join the waitlist and wait until you get access).
  1. On the Learn About homepage, you'll see a series of prompts/ topics to explore. You can also add your own prompt (type or add image(s)) to explore any other topic.
  1. I decided to try one of the displayed prompts why do shells sound like the sea?. It came back with a response that contained a 'Why it matters' card as well as an interactive list of different topics making up the explanation. Clicking on either of the topics would get Learn About to dive deeper into that one.
  1. On the left, the tool listed suggested topics to understand the topic more deeply. So, I asked it to explain to me about sound waves further, and it came up with an interactive diagram this time.

Learn About as a learning aid compared to Gemini

Giving the same prompt to Gemini, it's instantly clear that Learn About is serious about its job as a learning aid. The difference in results is drastically different. Gemini only sticks to the question at hand, whereas Learn About brings out all the resources in its arsenal so you can understand the topic fully and deeply.

However, I wasn't entirely convinced about Learn About's "suitability" to be more of a learning aid than Gemini or other chatbots that aren't grounded in research and educational data. While Learn About is supposed to come up with credible educational sources, in this instant, it returns Reddit links.

But upon inspecting further, it seemed to me that the links in the related content section were mainly links from Google search results for the query and did not seem to impact the actual content of the answers from Learn About.

The one drawback of using Learn About is that your chats with the model aren't saved. As soon as you close the chat or start a new chat, your current interactions with the model will be lost. So, if you stumble across anything useful, be it information or further links, be sure to save them somewhere else.

After trying Learn About with topics I cared about, and had previously tried with other chatbots like Gemini and ChatGPT, I can say that the former brings something unique to the table – engagement. But I will still test it further to see if it can be a sustainable and better learning partner in the long run.