The top artificial intelligence companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Deepmind, and such, have been competing relentlessly to build the perfect large language model (LLM). Anthropic recently introduced a powerful feature to its flagship AI chatbot Claude AI.
The Claude 3.5 Sonnet now comes with a feature for PDF analysis and an image reader. Not only can the model interpret textual information in PDFs, but it can also accurately analyze visual data such as images, charts, bar graphs, and more.
However, there are certain limitations to consider. Firstly, the PDF files should be under 32MB and contain a maximum of 100 pages. Also, the PDFs must be password-free and unencrypted. As PDF support is currently in beta and uses Claude’s vision capabilities, it is subject to the same constraints.
Currently, PDF support is accessible through the new Claude 3.5 Sonnet via direct API access. Soon, this feature will be available on both Amazon Bedrock and Google Vertex AI platforms.
So, with this new feature, you can ask Claude about any text, images, charts, or tables within your PDF documents. You can use it for:
- Analyzing financial reports and understanding charts/tables
- Extracting key information from legal documents
- Translation assistance for documents
- Converting document information into structured formats
This article will explore how to use Claude AI for PDF analysis and reading images. Let’s begin.
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How to use Claude AI for PDF Analysis?
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to use Claude AI for PDF analysis and image reading:
- Enable Visual PDFs in Feature Preview:
- Go to the left sidebar, scroll to the bottom, and click on your account name or email address.
- From the menu that appears, select Feature Preview.
- In the Feature Preview window, find Visual PDFs and toggle the switch to On.
- Upload a PDF:
- Return to the main chat screen.
- Start a new chat and click the paperclip icon at the bottom of the chat box.
- Select a PDF from your computer and upload it. Once the file’s thumbnail appears under the prompt, you are ready to interact with it.
- Ask Questions or Make Requests:
- Start with a simple request, like “Summarize the file” to get a general overview.
- For more specific inquiries, submit detailed questions about the text, sections, or particular elements in the document.
- Refer to Specific Images, Tables, or Charts:
- Identify the logical page number (displayed by your PDF viewer) containing the content you are interested in. Avoid using the physical page number printed on the document itself.
- In Adobe Reader, hover over the physical page number to see the logical page number.
- Manage Large PDF Files:
- If your PDF is too large, split it into smaller sections and upload each part separately.
- To explore sample PDFs, visit Anthropic’s GitHub page, where you can download files designed for testing with Claude.
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Who Can Use Claude AI PDF Support?
You can use Claude AI’s PDF support only if you have a Pro plan. Claude AI’s Pro Plan offers early access to new features along with additional perks. You can purchase it from the official website at $20 per month.
How Does the PDF Support Work?
This is how Claude Sonnet’s PDF Support works:
- Content Extraction: When you upload a PDF, the system extracts the content from each page by converting it into an image. Alongside each page’s image, the text is extracted to be analyzed in parallel. This way, all information, both text and visual, is ready for further processing.
- Document Analysis: The system analyzes both the text and images to gain a comprehensive understanding of the document. By providing the document as a mix of text and images, it allows insights into visual elements such as charts, diagrams, and other non-text content. This means you can ask specific questions about these visuals as well as the text itself.
- Use with Additional Features: PDF support works effectively alongside other features, such as:
- Prompt caching: Enhances performance for repeated analysis of the same document by storing previous responses.
- Batch processing: Allows high-volume document processing to be handled efficiently.
- Tool use: Enables specific information from the document to be extracted and used as inputs for various tools, making it easier to work with large amounts of data within PDFs.
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PDF Support Token System Breakdown
The token count for a PDF file in Claude AI is based on both the total text extracted and the number of pages in the document. Each page is converted to an image. Hence, the cost calculations align with image-based processing. However, each page typically generates between 1,500 to 3,000 tokens, depending on the density of the content.
Standard input token pricing applies, and there are no extra fees specifically for processing PDFs. Also, you can calculate the token count ahead of time to estimate the cost for messages containing PDF content.
The Bottom Line
Claude 3.5 Sonnet has already been hailed by tech enthusiasts worldwide, as a less expensive but faster alternative to ChatGPT. With the added new feature of PDF analysis and image reading, it is now even more versatile and user-friendly. This update has solidified its position as a top choice for those wanting advanced AI text generation capabilities. You can now enjoy enhanced functionality and cost-effective solutions for your text processing needs with Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 3.5.
