Choosing an AI Model
Every model-enabled feature starts on Auto, so you do not need to understand model names to get a strong result. You can still open the model picker and choose a named model whenever you want more control.
Default model by plan and feature
Reasoning effort describes how long the automatic model is allowed to think, review, and improve its answer or creation. Low prioritizes efficiency, Medium adds more deliberation, and High gives the model the most time for complex work.
| Feature | Free | Premium | Laureate Auto |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI Chat | GPT 6 Luna Low reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning |
| Deep Research | GPT 6 Luna Low reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning |
| AI Slides and document creators: PDF Documents, Study Guides, Worksheets, Timelines, SOPs, Flowcharts, Lesson Plans, Outlines, Cheat Sheets, Reports, Case Studies, Rubrics, Spreadsheets, File Documents, and Essay Writer | GPT 6 Luna Low reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning |
| AI Video Lectures | GPT 6 Luna Medium reasoning | GPT 6 Luna Extra-high reasoning | GPT 6 Luna Extra-high reasoning |
| Infographics and Mind Maps | GPT 6 Luna Low reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning |
| Flashcards | GPT 6 Luna Low reasoning | Gemini 3.8 Flash Low reasoning | Gemini 3.8 Flash Medium reasoning |
| Podcasts | GPT 6 Luna Low reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning | GPT 6 Luna High reasoning |
Auto always stays on a 1× model, so a creation started on Auto costs one AI Creation Credit on every plan. Choosing a weighted named model is what changes the cost.
The AI Image Playground uses a separate image-model catalog: Nano Banana 2 Lite is its default on Free, Premium, and Laureate. Text reasoning effort does not apply. Voice Mode also uses a separate real-time voice system.
What a model costs
The model you choose decides how much a creation weighs against your weekly AI Creation Credit allowance:
- Most models cost 1 AI Creation Credit. This includes everything Auto uses.
- Claude Sonnet 5 and Kimi K3 cost 2. Their rows carry a 2× badge.
- GPT 6 Astra and Claude Opus 5.5 cost 3. They are our Frontier models, and their rows in the picker carry a 3× badge so you can see the cost before you choose.
Choosing a 2× or 3× model does not draw on a separate allowance — it simply weighs more against the same one. Every paid plan can choose from the full creation model catalogue, Frontier models included.
These multipliers apply to creations only. AI Chat never spends an AI Creation Credit, on any plan and whatever model you pick there — a chat message counts against your Chat message allowance instead, which is unlimited on paid plans.
A failed creation returns what it reserved, and weekly allowances reset every Monday at 00:00 UTC.
Creation-only models
Some models are offered for AI creations but not for AI Chat. The Frontier models — GPT 6 Astra and Claude Opus 5.5 — have always been creation-only. As of 13 September, Claude Sonnet 5, Kimi K3, GPT 6 Sol, Grok 4.7, Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview and Mistral Medium 3.5 joined them: you can still pick any of these for a video lecture, podcast, slide deck, document, research report or flashcard deck, but they no longer appear in the Chat model picker.
If a conversation was already set to one of these models, nothing in it is lost — your next message is simply answered by your plan's default chat model instead.
Where you can pick a model
The Chat picker and the creation pickers are no longer the same catalogue. The chat menu is a curated selection and it is smaller than the creation catalogue, so a model you rely on for video lectures or documents may not be offered in Chat at all. Check the picker you are actually in rather than assuming a model carries across.
Model selection is available in:
- Home and AI Chat
- AI Slides and document creators
- Deep Research
- AI Video Lectures
- Podcasts
- Flashcards on paid plans
- Worksheets, Study Guides, Mind Maps, and Infographics on paid plans
The picker opens on Auto, Auto (Premium), and Auto (Laureate), shown on every plan so the plan differences are visible before upgrading. Auto rows name the plan tier only — they no longer show the model behind them, so an Auto choice keeps following current routing instead of freezing to one model.
Named models sit below Auto. In creation tools the main menu lists Frontier Models, then Recommended Models, with the rest of the catalogue one level deeper under More Models. AI Chat has no Frontier models, so its menu goes straight from Auto to Recommended Models.
A model that needs a paid plan carries an Upgrade badge. Choosing it opens your plan options rather than failing when you send.
Scholarly remembers the model you chose for each creation tool separately — including Podcasts, Video Lectures, Research, and Slides — and remembers your Chat model separately again, so returning to a tool starts from your last pick.
In AI Chat on a paid plan, the Recommended Models are Gemini 3.8 Flash, Muse Spark 1.3, and Mistral Large 3. On Free, Chat offers GPT 6 Luna, Gemini 3 Flash, Gemini 3.5 Flash Lite, GLM 5.3 Flash, Mistral Small 4, and Claude Haiku 4.5. Auto uses GPT 6 Luna on every plan.
In the creation tools the Recommended Models are GPT 6 Sol, Grok 4.7, Claude Sonnet 5, Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview, Kimi K3, and Muse Spark 1.3. Flashcards recommend Gemini 3.8 Flash, Kimi K3, and Muse Spark 1.3. Free users can browse these paid choices, and selecting one opens your plan options.
Both lists change as models are released and retired, so treat the picker itself as the source of truth.
Models grouped under Frontier Models are the most capable, higher-compute choices: GPT 6 Astra and Claude Opus 5.5. Any paid plan can pick them, and each one costs 3 AI Creation Credits instead of 1.
Named models
The catalogue spans the GPT, Gemini, Claude, Grok, Mistral, GLM, DeepSeek, Kimi, and Muse families, and it changes as models are released or retired — we have refreshed it several times in the last month alone. Rather than memorising a list, open the picker: every row names the model and carries its badge, so you can always see what is available to you today and what it will cost.
Claude Sonnet 5 and Kimi K3 cost 2 AI Creation Credits. GPT 6 Astra and Claude Opus 5.5 cost 3. Every other named choice costs 1, the same as Auto.
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is available under More Models in Chat and all creation model menus. It supports text and image sources, tools, and optional thinking in Chat, at the standard credit rate.
Thinking in Chat
Some named Chat models offer a Thinking control. Turning it on lets the model reason before answering and shows a progress summary that collapses into a completed thought block. Other models always reason and do not show the control.
Model data handling and privacy
Scholarly never sells your content or uses your prompts and sources to train AI models. Your material is sent only to the provider needed to produce your requested result. See the Privacy Policy for full details.
Tips
- If you are unsure, leave the picker on Auto.
- Try another named model when you want a different writing style or a second take.
- Check the 2× or 3× badge before choosing a weighted model; models without one cost 1 AI Creation Credit.
- A model missing from Chat is not a fault — check whether it is one of the creation-only models above.
- Two other rules still apply whatever you pick: failed requests return their reservation, and a new flashcard deck with fewer than 15 cards does not count.
Related
- AI Chat — where the chat picker lives, and what a message costs.
- Plans and Limits — AI Creation Credits and chat allowances per plan.
- Customization Profiles — pin a preferred model to a profile so you stop re-picking it.
- AI Image Playground — the separate image-model catalogue, with its own picker.