AI-Powered Search: Find with natural language in Evernote
Nov 4 2024 | Issue 16 | Link to this issue | Subscribe
Hi Reader –
Welcome back to the third and final part of our series looking into the AI options available in Evernote. So far, we’ve talked about AI Transcription and AI Edit.
Today, I’ll show you AI-Powered Search, the third of Evernote’s AI features, and one that offers an entirely new way to find information stored in your account.
How AI-powered search is different from traditional Evernote search:
AI-Powered Search is an alternative to standard search (which remains as powerful as ever). I'll share a real-life example next that shows the key differences between these two search methods.
When you use AI-Powered Search, it provides both a direct answer to your question and a collection of notes that match your query, similar to what you'd get with standard search. Additionally, this feature works across multiple languages, making it accessible to users worldwide.
Case Study: Using Evernote for Genealogy Research
Inside the Academy, a member shared an experience that perfectly captures how powerful AI-Powered Search can be. She said:
I was struck by a distinction made in a recent Academy training — that AI-Powered search is great for asking a specific question, the answer to which is probably somewhere in your Evernote notes — while traditional search is great for finding & going to a particular note that you want to look through yourself.
— Diana F, Academy Member
Diana found AI-Powered Search perfect for her genealogy research, because it answered a specific direct question for her, vs, just retrieving a note (or set of notes) where she would then have to scan for the answer.
For example, when she needs to quickly access specific points of data, she uses AI-Powered Search to ask, “Where was [ancestor] born?”, or “When did [ancestor] get married?”.
And Evernote directly answers her question as you see here:
“I was struck by a distinction made in a recent Academy training — that AI-Powered search is great for asking a specific question, the answer to which is probably somewhere in your Evernote notes — while traditional search is great for finding & going to a particular note that you want to look through yourself. ”
Diana found AI-Powered Search perfect for her genealogy research, because it answered a specific direct question for her, vs, just retrieving a note (or set of notes) where she would then have to scan for the answer.
For example, when she needs to quickly access specific points of data, she uses AI-Powered Search to ask, “Where was [ancestor] born?”, or “When did [ancestor] get married?”.
And Evernote directly answers her question as you see here:
While AI-powered search does return the note(s) where the data was found, Diana saves lots of time because she doesn’t need to search through the note(s) to find the information.
This is what the Academy is all about — discovering not only how others use Evernote's powerful and new features, but also sharing those "aha" moments that help us adapt their clever solutions into our own workflows.
🧠 Academy Members: Learn all the feature details and get additional use-case ideas for AI-Powered Search in this on-demand Masterclass training.
What about privacy?
As discussed in parts one and two of this series, your data is not used to train an AI engine. Evernote’s very upfront about this and explains it as this on their AI Features section of their website:
And, don’t forget: AI-Powered Search is optional. If you have any concerns about it, simply stick to Standard Search.
How to Use AI-Powered Search
Using AI-Powered Search is easy. Here’s a step-by-step guide.
1. Open Evernote on your desktop or mobile app.
2. Click on the Search Bar at the top of your screen. If Standard search is selected, toggle to the AI-Powered search option. You’ll notice a new prompt that guides you to “Type a question” instead of just typing in keywords. This is where the AI magic happens!
3. Type a Question like you would when speaking to a friend. For example:
“What’s the email address for Gwen from last year’s sales conference?”
“What are my workout plans for Monday?”
The AI will scan your notes and deliver direct answers — no need to scroll through a list of notes or use filters.
4. Review the Result: The AI will pull the relevant content from your notes and display the answer right at the top of the notes list. It’s fast, intuitive, and saves you time.
Free for Now — What’s Next?
AI-Powered Search is available to all users, regardless of plan, during this beta period. As the feature evolves, it may become available only on certain paid plans, so take advantage of it while you can and get a feel for how it works for you.
AI in Evernote: Your Tools, Your Choice
I hope you enjoyed our three-part series on how Evernote is bringing AI into your workflow. Go back and review the AI-powered Transcription and AI Edit newsletters to see how these tools are here to help you work smarter, not harder.
Cheers to smarter searching –
Stacey
PS: Quick reminder – as an Evernote Certified Expert, I'm one of Evernote’s most skilled and loyal users, but I don't work for Evernote. Find details on how to reach out directly to Evernote with feedback or subscription questions on their contact page.
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