AI by Zapier vs Claude or ChatGPT Actions

Hi ​@HueyFreeman, welcome to the Zapier Community 👋

Great question! There are a few subtle but important differences between using AI by Zapier and using standalone integrations like ChatGPT (by OpenAI) or Claude (by Anthropic).

✅ AI by Zapier

• Unified interface: Lets you choose from multiple AI providers (like OpenAI or Anthropic) in one action.

• Built-in credentials: If you see a Zap icon next to the model name in the Model dropdown, that means Zapier provides credentials for you — no need to bring your own API key. 

• Build mode: Create a custom prompt, select a template, or copy an existing prompt from your account.

• Here’s a great resource to learn more about this tool.

🤖 ChatGPT (by OpenAI) and Claude (by Anthropic)

• These standalone integrations are dedicated apps in Zapier, each representing a specific provider.

• ChatGPT (OpenAI)  specifically allows for a broader range of actions beyond a conversation with an Assistant, such as:

  • Analyze Image Content With Vision

  • Convert Text to Speech

  • Generate An Image

  • For the full list of ChatGPT (OpenAI) actions click here;

• ChatGPT (by OpenAI) supports advanced features like Memory and Agents that aren’t available through AI by Zapier yet. You’ll see these options in the UI when configuring the ChatGPT action.

• Both integrations require you to connect your own OpenAI or Anthropic account — Zapier doesn’t supply the credentials for these integrations.

Hope that helps!

Thank you!  Are there differences in timeout limits?