AI Newsletter #4: Special edition and your AI couldn't copy
For the past few months, I've been sharing AI updates with the ODVI team. Now, as DTT's scope expands to provide standards setting regarding digital transformation strategy and AI capability building across all Business Units, we're extending this newsletter to everyone organization-wide.
Consider this our special edition — not just because it's our fourth issue, but because we're welcoming more of you into the conversation. Our goal is simple: keep you informed, spark ideas, and help you apply AI to your work.
Today's Tip: Access Premium AI Models (Yes, Free)
Most of us already have AI subscriptions — whether personally or through company-provided tools like Gemini (from Google Workspace) or ChatGPT. But if you're still on a free plan, or just curious about trying Claude, Kimi, or other premium models without paying the subscription fee, here's a useful resource.
Meet Chatbot Arena (arena.ai)
Chatbot Arena is a crowdsourced AI ranking platform. Here's how it works: you're shown two anonymous AI responses side-by-side, and you pick which one answers better. Your votes help generate ELO rankings for models. Check out the leaderboard: https://arena.ai/leaderboard
The upside? In exchange for your votes, you get free access to premium models — image, video, text, you name it.
How to Use It
- Go to arena.ai (create an account its free)
- In the top navbar, you'll see a dropdown (default: "Battle Mode")
- Switch it to "Direct"
- Pick any model you want (Opus 4.6 Thinking is newest releases and top model in most categories) — or select "Max" (recommended)
What's "Max"? It's essentially a cheat code. The system automatically selects the top-performing model for your specific prompt, giving you a hybrid of the best capabilities across all providers.
That said, there's no reason to settle for limited free tiers anymore. Give it a try, explore different providers/models, and see what works for you. Enjoy!