What is NotebookLM and why is it so useful?
- A free AI tool from Google for working with documents
- Upload a PDF, Word file or Google Doc and get a summary right away
- Ask questions about the file: "What are my obligations under this contract?"
- Creates an Audio Overview, a podcast-style conversation that explains the material
- Available at notebooklm.google.com
How to summarize a PDF, step by step
- Go to notebooklm.google.com (a Google account is required)
- Click New Notebook
- Click Add Source and upload your PDF
- Wait a few seconds for it to load
- Read the automatic summary of the source
- Ask questions in the chat: "What are the main points?", "What should I pay attention to?"
Questions worth asking about a document
- "Summarize this document in 5 points"
- "What are my obligations under this agreement?"
- "What risks are there in this document?"
- "What are the important dates?"
- "Are there any unusual clauses I should check?"
- "Write me a 30-second summary to present in a meeting"
More tools for summarizing documents
- Claude (claude.ai): excellent for analyzing contracts and legal documents
- ChatGPT: you can upload a PDF and ask questions about it
- ChatPDF (chatpdf.com): built specifically for PDF files, easy to use
- All of these have a free version
- For legal or medical decisions, the summary is a starting point, not a replacement for a professional
Common use cases
- Lawyer: summarizing contracts and legal documents before a client meeting
- Doctor: getting the key points of new medical articles
- Manager: reading long reports before a board meeting
- Student: summarizing textbooks and articles for an exam
- Business owner: reading supplier agreements and terms of service