AI Can Do More Than You Think — The Most Practical Ways to Use AI Every Day

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Nitin Sharma

Most of us think AI is just for generating blog posts, stock images or videos, or building websites.

That's like buying an iPhone and only using it as a calculator or saying the internet is only for sending emails.

The truth? AI can do way more, things that save you hours, make you money, and even let you build stuff you didn't think was possible without a team of experts.

But 99% of people don't even know these use cases exist. They're stuck at surface level while a small group is quietly using AI to get unfair advantages in business, work, and everyday life.

That's why I wrote this post.
 
Here, I'm going to share the most practical, real-world ways you can use AI right now, not the generic "use ChatGPT for research" or "generate podcasts with NotebookLM" advice you've already heard a hundred times.

Note: This post was originally published in my newsletter AI Made Simple, where I share practical, real-world ways to use AI. If you find this valuable, don't just stop here — subscribe to my newsletter on Substack and get step-by-step, no-BS guides like this twice a week.

With that said, let's get started.

1. Turn your memories (or ideas) into illustrated storybooks in minutes

Let's be honest, we all love storybooks, novels, and comics. Stories hold a special place in our hearts. And creators even build entire businesses selling custom storybooks online.

But what if you could generate illustrated storybooks in minutes with just a few simple prompts? Yes, it's now possible.

Google recently introduced a feature where you can create your own 10-page storybook with custom art and even audio just by writing prompts.

Here's how it works:

Go to Gemini, click on the left menu, and you'll see the option called "Storybook".

If you don't see it, click on "Explore Gems" and you'll find it there. That's where you type your prompt and instantly generate a complete storybook the way you want.

I'm a big Marvel fan, so I wrote a prompt where Captain America and Iron Man have a disagreement, fight it out in epic scenes, and finally end with a satisfying conclusion.

Here's what it generated:

Insane, right?

The best part is you can take your kid's drawings or photos from a family trip and turn them into a storybook. And even imagine holding a book that mixes your own memories with AI art and narration. It's more than just a storybook to be honest. It's a memory you can keep forever.

Why It Matters: Thanks to this, parents can make different bedtime stories within minutes, teachers can use it to explain difficult topics in class, one can give it as a gift to the kids, and even creators can sell them on Amazon to make passive income.

2. Generate visuals with Napkin AI

Think about it.

You're preparing a presentation, writing a blog post, or putting together a report, and you realize you need visuals to make it more engaging.

What do you usually do? Open Canva or some other design tool, start creating manually, maybe use a bit of AI here and there. Even then, it takes at least 5 to 10 minutes to put together a single basic visual. And honestly, it feels like a tedious process.

That's exactly where Napkin AI can help you.

With Napkin, you can simply import your text (or even generate it directly inside the tool) and then click a button to instantly turn it into clear, professional visuals that match your content. No wasted time, no complex designing.

Here are some visuals I generated on a random topic to give you an idea:

So if you are a writer, founders, PMs, consultants, or even a students, you can use Napkin AI to generate different visuals as per your need.

Who this is for:

• Founders & PMs → turn product roadmaps or customer journeys into flows.
• Writers → make your posts shareable with diagrams.
• Students → simplify research papers into clean charts.
• Consultants → pitch decks that look like McKinsey slides - without the hours.

Why It Matters: People usually ignore data if it has no visuals. Whether you're pitching an idea, writing a blog, or updating your boss, a simple chart makes your point stick.

The problem? Creating clean visuals in Excel, PowerPoint, or Canva takes time and effort. Napkin AI changes that - you type text, and it generates different charts that you can use. This is quick, and the professional visuals make your message more convincing.

3. Generate text-on-image graphics

Let's be honest, we have tons of popular AI image generation tools like Leonardo AI and more. And they're free (up to a limit), loaded with powerful features, and capable of generating high-quality, realistic images within seconds.

But there's still one big limitation.

Try asking these tools to generate an image with text printed on it like a poster, a thumbnail, or a product mockup, and you'll often end up with something weird, distorted, or completely unusable.

That's exactly where I use Microsoft Copilot. Yes, it uses the ChatGPT model under the hood, but more importantly, it actually gets the job done when it comes to images with text.

For example, I've created thumbnails for my own digital products using Copilot, and the results were great.

To get started, you simply need to visit the "Microsoft Copilot" website and sign in using your Microsoft account.

After that, write a detailed prompt about what you want to generate along with the text you want over the image, and it will generate.

Here's an example I've tried:

In a similar way, I sometimes use Qwen AI to generate images with text printed over them.

Here's an example:

Here, I have used the "Image Generation" feature. The quality is not that good, but you get what you need.

Note that both of these tools are free to use up to a limit. Also, sometimes they can hallucinate or give you random outputs, so you may need to prompt again.

Why It Matters: Thumbnails, posters, and banners are the front door to your content. Creating them manually takes time. Also, if you use any AI image generators, the text on the image won't be perfect, since most AI tools even today fail at accurate text rendering. That's why Copilot and Qwen are a big deal and help you generate images with text on top.

4. Generate mobile and web designs with AI

Most of you already know there are plenty of AI website and app builders out there that let you create fully functional sites and apps in no time, all thanks to AI.

But do you know any AI tools that can generate actual designs for mobile and websites? You probably can't think of one. That's because there are just a few, and most of them are not popular yet.

But now, we have one of the best: Stitch (by Google). It can help you generate web and mobile designs simply by writing a prompt, and it uses advanced AI models like Gemini.

To try it out, simply visit the Stitch website and click on the "Try Now" button.

Then write your prompt about what you want to generate, or use some default prompts to see how it works.

I tested it myself by asking it to generate a mobile-friendly app for a marketplace of handmade ceramics and pottery, and here's what it came up with:

Insane, right?

And the best part? Stitch isn't just for professional designers. So if you're a designer, developer, startup founder, or even someone exploring app or web ideas, you can use Stitch to instantly create usable designs without starting from scratch.

Why It Matters: Every product idea begins with a sketch, but bad design slows things down. Hiring a designer early costs a lot, and doing it yourself often looks unprofessional.

That's where I think Stitch can help you turn an idea into a full interface design in minutes. And thanks to that, you don't just get nice-looking screens - you get clarity, speed, and a solid starting point for building or pitching your idea.

5. Build products that people actually want

If you've made it this far, then I owe it to you to share another powerful AI tool that can actually help you build products people want.

Let's be honest, most of us dream of creating something people truly enjoy using, while also turning it into a source of income.

The challenge is not the idea itself, but turning that idea into reality.

That's where you can use Buildpad.

It is an AI-powered tool that guides you through the entire product-building journey in a clear and practical way, using real research.

To be more specific, it breaks everything into 8 structured stages, and once you complete one step, you move on to the next. This removes the confusion and gives you a clear flow to follow.

Think of it as your product-building roadmap. It takes you from idea → research → positioning → MVP → distribution, all within a single platform.

And I've personally used Buildpad when I wanted to launch something of my own. And thanks to that, I was able to create my Substack newsletter, AI Made Simple.

If you want to get started, the founder has also shared a helpful tutorial that walks you through the process.

As for pricing, Buildpad offers a free plan with certain limits, which makes it easy to try before committing further.

Why It Matters: We all know that 9 out of 10 indie products fail, not because the tech was bad, but because they built something nobody wanted. Most founders skip the crucial steps like validation, rely on intuition, or get lost in research rabbit holes.

And that's where I think Buildpad forces you to go through structured, evidence-backed steps: real pain points, positioning, messaging, and roadmap. This matters because it replaces "building in the dark" with a practical, guided process that reduces the odds of wasting months on the wrong idea.

6. Create stunning graphic designs within minutes

Most of you are already familiar with Canva, a popular platform for creating all kinds of visual content, from presentations to website graphics.

For most of us, it has become the default choice for many when it comes to quick and easy design.

But there's another tool you should know about: Microsoft Designer.

Well, it even uses AI to help you generate stunning designs, and you can create almost anything like images, icons, banners, posters, social posts, collages, personalized avatars, and much more in minutes.

Let's try designing a poster. For that, you need to write a description or add an image, select the size you want to create, and here's what it generated:

Other than that, you can even visit the "Edit with AI" page to edit images and use other features as shown below.

And talking about the pricing, it is free to use up to a limit, and you can access most of its features in the free plan.

Why It Matters: Social feeds are visual-first. Whether it's LinkedIn carousels, Instagram posts, or ads, design quality makes or breaks reach.

Sure, Canva is great and even has tons of AI features, but I wanted to let you know about Microsoft Designer since it also has some great features. You can use it to generate different types of graphic design with the help of AI.

Thank you for reading this till the end, and I hope this post gave you a few "aha!" moments about how you use AI in your daily life.

If you really find this post valuable, and find new ways to use AI, please share it with your network, and like it.

And if you want to read more such valuable content, you can subscribe to my "AI Made Simple" newsletter on Substack. I share this type of step-by-step, no-BS guides twice a week, and you will get my exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Nitin Sharma