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With just a few weeks before “sylly week” now is the perfect time to acclimate yourself with Mizzou’s newest technology resource, Show Me AI. If you’re heavily involved outside of the classroom, this may be exactly what you need to help streamline your academic tasks. This new generative AI platform is designed to meet you where you’re at and increase your baseline productivity.
Getting comfortable with the software ahead of time means you won’t be scrambling at the beginning of the semester, and the learning curve won’t be as steep. You’ll walk into week one knowing how to build custom prompts, automate recurring tasks and the capacity to delegate your time accordingly.
Show Me AI Overview
Following a year-long pilot, the University of Missouri has officially launched Show Me AI, one of the university’s newest technology-based initiatives. The program is available campuswide for faculty and students as part of the institution’s ongoing commitment to remaining “AI-forward.”
Show Me AI is something of a “walled garden,” providing students and faculty alike with the assurance of safe, secure and ethical access to generative AI. The platform can be used for teaching, classroom integration and innovative learning. This tool is reflective of Mizzou’s institutional values like academic excellence, curiosity-driven research and intellectual growth.
This tool is available for students and faculty to access using their same university Single Sign On credentials.
Features + Training
Once you’ve familiarized yourself with Show Me AI, you’ll find three core tools that will aid you in creating seamless workflows. Those essential tools include creating assistants, model selection and custom prompt templates. Used in tandem, they allow you to increase your overall productivity.
Creating task assistants
Task assistants are designed to automate routine tasks that often require variable output.
Examples of practical uses for task assistants:
- Creating weekly study schedules along with exam countdowns for each course
- Summarizing dense articles and providing key takeaways
- Conducting behavioral mock interviews
Instructions
- Select the Assistant Icon
- Name your assistant
- Provide clear and specific prompt instructions for your assistant
Generative AI model selection
One of Show Me AI’s most distinctive traits is the model selection feature. The program allows you to identify the right generative AI model for your specific tasks. Here a few of the options available on the platform:
Claude 4.1 Opus
- Great for deep reasoning, long-form writing and when quality matters most
- Moderate-high environmental impact
- Slower responses and an overuse of resources for small minute tasks
Claude 4.5 Haiku
- Perfect for everyday writing, lightweight tasks (i.e., emails, summaries, brainstorming)
- Not ideal for multistep logistical reasoning
- Moderate environmental impact
Gemini 2.0 Flash
- Offers ultra-fast responses, simple Q&A, high-volume workflows
- Relatively shallow reasoning skills
- Low-moderate environmental impact
Gemini 2.5 Pro
- Ideal for analytical problem-solving, research and coding
- Presents output in a technical writing tone
- Moderate-high environmental impact
ChatGPT 4.1 Mini
- Good for everyday conversations
- Struggles with complex logic and nuanced writing prompts
- Moderate environmental impact
This tool is meant to streamline the usage of similar prompts that only differ slightly. You can essentially create base prompts with details that vary by task. This is great for prompts you plan to reuse that you can easily manipulate based on your intended output.
Creating prompt templates
Instructions:
- Give your prompt a name
- Provide a prompt description: Create a base prompt with varying placeholders
- Example: “You are an expert on [Placeholder: Homer’s The Odyssey]. Create a [Placeholder: Slideshow] using the information in this [Placeholder: PDF File] detailing the significance of the story.”
- Set Custom Instructions: Create rules that structure the responses that will be reinforced throughout the conversation
- Example: “This PowerPoint should include an introduction, executive summary and conclusion.”
By Raigan Clay