ChatGPT is a large language model (LLM) used by 100 million users weekly for various tasks, including in-depth document comparison.
AI-powered document comparison helps users in several ways:
So, without any further ado, let’s explore how you can use ChatGPT to compare documents – in three easy steps.
NOTE: We used ChatGPT’s latest iteration – GPT-4.0 – which, according to OpenAI, is faster and boasts better visual comprehension capabilities. However, the following process is the same when using the free version of ChatGPT 4 or 3.5.
Firstly, head over to the ChatGPT login page. If you don’t already have an account, you can sign up using a pre-existing Google, Microsoft or Apple account or your email address. You’ll then be able to access ChatGPT’s main interface and follow these three steps:
Click the small paperclip icon to upload a document from your computer.
NOTE: ChatGPT 4.0 can connect directly to Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive.
ChatGPT accepts most document formats, including PDF, Word (.doc, .docx and .rtf) and Excel. The maximum limit for each upload is 512MB – roughly 10,000 pages of a PDF or Word document. ChatGPT can accept a maximum of ten files. Consequently, if you want to compare more than ten files, you must do so in batches.
The more specific the prompt, the more accurate the output. For example, when we asked ChatGPT to tell us, ‘What’s the difference between these two documents?’ it gave information about the documents’ metadata, which may be unnecessary for many users.
The document’s metadata: ChatGPT’s analysis
I doctored a balance sheet by slightly changing the figures for non-current liabilities before asking ChatGPT to compare them. While ChatGPT identified the differences at the end of the analysis, the output wasn't a concise summary of the modifications. Instead, it contained excessive information rather than a simple comparison of the documents.
For maximum success, here are three tips for prompting ChatGPT:
By being specific and experimental, you can compare documents with ease.
You can, therefore, use prompts like:
Here’s an example of ChatGPT effectively comparing two documents:
If you already know the differences between the documents, mention them in the prompt (e.g. ‘there are differences in the tabular data across all pages’).
Though LLMs – including ChatGPT – continuously improve their accuracy, it’s always worth checking their output. If ChatGPT identifies any differences between the documents, consider verifying them manually (especially if they contain sensitive or critical information). Checking ChatGPT’s output is especially essential for legal, healthcare or academic research documents. More sophisticated AI-powered document solutions are designed to save time by containing validation mechanisms that eliminate the need for human review.
It may be tempting to skip this step, but inaccurate AI outputs tend to have disastrous consequences. Our extensive LLM testing demonstrates that ChatGPT usually generates one error or a hallucination (where an LLM generates false information) per page.
If you’re tired of logging onto ChatGPT and copying and pasting the output, consider connecting via an API. Doing this will require a 4.0 subscription (and buying tokens) and in-house technical expertise to set up the integration.
Setting up an automated workflow using a tool like Zapier, Mulesoft or Workato is another way to automate document comparison. Once you set up a trigger (such as uploading a document to a drive), ChatGPT will automatically compare the two documents, depositing their findings in the desired repository (such as the cell in an Excel spreadsheet).
Sometimes, ChatGPT malfunctions and becomes inaccessible. If you ever find yourself in a time-critical document comparison situation, here are two free LLMs we’ve tested that deliver similarly effective results.
If you need to convert images to documents or vice versa, it’s generally quick and easy. Simply click ‘Save As’ at the top of the document and save to the desired file type.
NOTE:
If you’re interested in the technical details of how ChatGPT can compare documents, here’s a (brief) summary.
ChatGPT can ‘read’ documents using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to convert them into machine-readable text. ChatGPT’s algorithms then break down the text into its individual components (i.e. letters, words, sentences and paragraphs) to contextually understand the document.
The LLM then uses textual matching techniques to compare the documents – exact matching to find identical text and fuzzy matching to identify similar but non-identical text. ChatGPT can also compare document alignment to identify any structural differences between documents. ChatGPT then generates text to summarise the comparison.
NOTE: ChatGPT’s contextual understanding – how it connects individual words and sentences ‒ can be flawed and often requires manual review.
Happy comparing!
ChatGPT can be a major time-saver for simple administrative tasks like comparing two documents. However you deploy ChatGPT, the tool can be highly effective in quickly identifying differences and similarities between documents—but not without human review.
Interested in fast, accurate data extraction from documents? Evolution AI can also engineer custom projects, such as with our automated contract comparison capabilities. Book a demo with our financial data project managers or email hello@evolution.ai for more information.
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