AI research synthesis that shows where your sources agree and differ
AI research synthesis in Search+ means asking one question of a whole set of sources and getting back a written answer that says where they agree, where they part ways and which document supports each point. The sources can be interview transcripts, policy papers, vendor reports or field notes saved as PDFs. Every claim in the synthesis carries an inline citation to the excerpt behind it, so the pattern you report can be checked one source at a time.
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Synthesis questions and what the answers contain
Examples of the cross-source questions synthesis work depends on.
A prose answer grouping the reasons it finds, with each reason cited to the transcripts and excerpts where it appears.
The answer sets out the positions side by side in sentences and cites each paper's passage, so the disagreement is visible at the source.
Search+ points to the claims that recur across documents and cites every place it found them, which helps separate a widely repeated point from a single source's view.
The answer names the outlying point and cites the one document that makes it, so you can decide whether it belongs in your synthesis.
What is AI research synthesis?
Research synthesis is the step after collection: combining what several sources say into one account of the evidence, including the patterns, the contradictions and the gaps. AI research synthesis tools help by reading across the whole set at once and drafting that account for you to check. The useful ones keep the link between each synthesized point and the passage it came from, because a synthesis that cannot be traced is hard to defend. In Search+ the synthesis is written as an answer in chat, drawn from the documents in one workspace, with inline citations. It suits qualitative and mixed sets such as transcripts, reports, policy documents and studies, whenever the question is what the set says as a whole rather than what one document says.
How to run a synthesis in Search+
- Gather the source set in one workspace
Create a workspace for the synthesis and add the PDFs that make up your evidence. Batches of up to 10 files can be dropped in at once, and each shows its processing status.
- State the frame once
In Workspace Context, write the research question, the terms you use and how you want disagreements reported. Those instructions apply to every question in the workspace.
- Ask cross-source questions
Ask about agreements, disagreements, recurring claims and outliers across all documents. Narrow a follow-up to a single source when one document needs a closer look.
- Verify each point at its source
Open the citations under each synthesized point and read the excerpt. Keep the conversation; it stays in your history for the next round.
What Search+ brings to synthesis work
Questions that span several documents can be answered in a single query over the whole workspace.
Ask for themes and repeated claims across the set, and each one comes back with citations to where it appears.
Ask Search+ to compare documents and point out where they differ, with citations to each source.
Trace a synthesized claim back to the passages that support it, and open a citation to read the excerpt.
Page or section references appear when the PDF provides them. Search+ does not invent locations the document does not contain.
Workspace Context keeps the same standing instructions in force for every question in the synthesis.
Limits to plan around
Search+ does not manage inclusion criteria or screening decisions. Keep those in your review tool and use Search+ for the questions.
The synthesis is written in chat as cited prose. There is no table or file export, so copy what you need into your own document.
AI answers can be incomplete or inaccurate. Treat the synthesis as a draft and check the cited evidence before you report a pattern.
Synthesizing by hand versus with Search+
| Step | Manual synthesis | Search+ |
|---|---|---|
| Spotting a recurring claim | Code each source, then tally | Ask for repeated claims and read where each appears |
| Finding contradictions | Lay sources side by side and reread | Ask where the documents differ, cited per source |
| Defending a pattern | Collect quotes into a separate file | Open the citation under each point |
| Keeping the frame consistent | Re-read the protocol before each session | Workspace Context applies it to every question |
AI research synthesis questions
Is Search+ one of the AI research synthesis tools for qualitative data?
Can it support evidence synthesis for a review?
How is this different from the literature review page?
How many documents can go into one synthesis?
Will it tell me which source each point came from?
Can I export the synthesis as a table?
Can I combine numbers from reports with interview material?
Does Search+ keep my synthesis between sessions?
Can I create an account without paying?
Can the source set include transcripts in Word or scanned documents?
Turn a pile of sources into a checked synthesis
Put the source set in one workspace and ask what it says as a whole, with citations under every point.
Start a workspace