Summarising and generating insights

The key difference between NotebookLM and other AI tools is that it bases its responses on the sources you upload. This means you can restrict the scope of where information is drawn from, and NotebookLM will clearly show which sources it used. It can also compare and contrast information across your uploaded materials.

To use it effectively, it’s important to organise notebooks within NotebookLM with intent. For example, you might create separate notebooks for each unit you are taking, or one notebook per assignment. Structuring your notebooks by purpose allows NotebookLM to generate more focused and relevant responses.

Once organised, you can use NotebookLM to generate a range of summaries and insights. Below are some example prompts:

  • “Provide a summary of the main ideas across my sources.”
  • “Summarise article A in simpler terms.”
  • “Identify the key terms in sources A, B and C.”
  • “What assumptions or viewpoints do the authors share?”
  • “What gaps do the authors identify?”
  • “What patterns or trends can be identified across the documents?”
  • “What implications or applications are suggested by these readings?”

When prompting NotebookLM, consider:

  1. what information you want it to extract, and
  2. what you want to do with that information.

Note

NotebookLM can also support different learning preferences. With a single click, your sources can be transformed into podcasts or videos. It can also generate slides, infographics, and mind maps, which are especially useful for visualising relationships and connections between ideas.