Tom's Guide Awards 2026: Our favorite AI tools, devices and features

In 2026, artificial intelligence (AI) became more integrated into our daily lives, offering remarkable capabilities. The top AI products and features of the year were selected through rigorous testing by Tom's Guide's team. Among these groundbreaking tools were AI chatbots, creative image and video generators, smart glasses, and AI agents capable of handling tasks previously requiring multiple applications.

Claude, developed by Anthropic, was chosen as the best AI chatbot for its ability to function as a genuine assistant or smart colleague. Unlike other chatbots, Claude does not automatically assume the user is correct and will point out flaws in the user's logic or conversation. It also excels in tone understanding and editing assistance, producing more natural-sounding results compared to other AI assistants.

Claude's ability to challenge the user and provide helpful feedback makes it an ideal choice for researchers and problem solvers.

For image generation, ChatGPT Images 2.5 was recognized as the best AI image generator. With a recent update, the tool has significantly improved its speed and quality of output. The 2.5 version can produce images 50% faster and creates more natural lighting and textures in the generated images. The "Sketch" feature allows users to doodle directly into ChatGPT, which then transforms the sketch into a more polished final image.

ChatGPT Images 2.5 stands out from its competitors with its enhanced understanding of complex visual requests and the ability to create cinematic results.

Veo 3.1, Google's video generation model, was deemed the best AI video generator. Its ease of use is a significant advantage, as users do not need technical expertise in video editing or animation. By simply describing the scene, characters, camera angle, lighting, and mood, Veo 3.1 can generate polished video clips complete with motion, dialogue, sound effects, and background audio.

Additionally, Veo 3.1's native audio generation capability creates dialogue, ambient noise, music, and sound effects, resulting in a more realistic final product. While Veo 3.1 cannot replace the entire video production process, its ability to quickly transform ideas into watchable content is a valuable tool for many users.