AI Tool Usage Assessment

Assess and report on AI tool subscriptions, usage patterns, and cost-effectiveness.

Overview

This skill provides a structured framework for evaluating AI tool subscriptions, identifying underutilized services, and optimizing AI-related spending. It generates comprehensive reports with actionable recommendations.

Quick Start

• Trigger assessment - Ask to "assess AI tools" or "review AI subscriptions"

• Answer questions - Provide usage patterns when asked

• Review report - Generated at reports/ai-tool-assessment/assessment-YYYYMMDD.md

• Take action - Follow recommendations for optimization

View latest assessment

cat reports/ai-tool-assessment/assessment-$(date +%Y%m%d).md

List all assessments

ls -la reports/ai-tool-assessment/

When to Use

• Monthly subscription reviews

• Quarterly budget planning

• When evaluating new AI tools

• After significant workflow changes

• Cost optimization initiatives

• Annual AI strategy reviews

Trigger

User asks to assess AI tools, review AI subscriptions, or analyze AI tool usage.

Instructions

When triggered, perform the following assessment:

1. Subscription Inventory

Review current paid memberships from docs/AI_development_tools.md :

Service Plan Monthly Cost Annual Cost

Claude (Anthropic) Max Plan $106.60 $1,279.20

OpenAI ChatGPT Plus $21.28 $255.36

Google AI Pro $19.99 $239.88

GitHub Copilot Pro $8.88/mo $106.60

TOTAL

$156.75 $1,881.04

2. Tool Usage Analysis

Assess each tool category:

Primary AI Assistants:

• Claude Max: Code generation, complex reasoning, long-context tasks

• OpenAI Plus: Alternative perspective, GPT-4o access, DALL-E

• Google AI Pro: Gemini access, Google ecosystem integration

Development Tools:

• GitHub Copilot: Inline code completion, IDE integration

• Claude-flow: Multi-agent orchestration

• Factory.ai: Automated droids for CI/CD

• Google Antigravity: Agent-first IDE (in evaluation)

3. Generate Assessment Report

Create report at reports/ai-tool-assessment/assessment-YYYYMMDD.md with:

AI Tool Usage Assessment - [DATE]

Executive Summary

• Total monthly spend: $X
• Primary tools in active use: [list]
• Tools underutilized: [list]
• Recommended actions: [list]

Subscription Status

[Table of all subscriptions with renewal dates if known]

Usage Patterns

[Analysis of which tools are used for what purposes]

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

Overlap Analysis

[Identify redundant capabilities across tools]

Recommendations

1. [Keep/Cancel/Downgrade recommendations]
2. [Usage optimization suggestions]
3. [New tools to consider]

Next Review Date

[Set quarterly review schedule]

4. Questions to Ask User

Before generating report, ask:

• Which tools have you used most this month?

• Are there specific tasks where one tool excels?

• Any tools you haven't used in 30+ days?

• New capabilities you need that current tools lack?

Execution Checklist

Before assessment:

• Access to subscription documentation

• User available for questions

• Previous assessments reviewed (if any)

During assessment:

• All subscriptions inventoried

• Usage patterns documented

• Cost-effectiveness analyzed

• Overlap identified

• User questions asked

After assessment:

• Report generated in correct location

• Recommendations prioritized

• Next review date set

• Source docs updated if needed

Error Handling

Common Issues

Error: Missing subscription data

• Cause: docs/AI_development_tools.md not found or outdated

• Solution: Ask user for current subscription list, create/update doc

Error: Incomplete usage data

• Cause: User unsure about usage patterns

• Solution: Suggest tracking usage for 2 weeks before full assessment

Error: Can't determine value

• Cause: Tool usage overlaps with others

• Solution: Run overlap analysis first, identify unique value per tool

Error: Outdated pricing

• Cause: Subscription costs changed

• Solution: Verify current pricing on vendor websites

Output

• Assessment report in reports/ai-tool-assessment/

• Updated docs/AI_development_tools.md if status changes

• Summary printed to console

Metrics

Metric Target How to Measure

Cost per active tool <$50/mo Total spend / tools used weekly

Utilization rate

70% Tools used / tools subscribed

Value rating average

3.5/5 Average across all tools

Overlap reduction <20% Redundant capabilities identified

Assessment frequency Quarterly Days since last assessment

Report Templates

Executive Summary Template

Executive Summary

Assessment Date: YYYY-MM-DD Review Period: [Month/Quarter] Total Monthly Spend: $XXX.XX

Key Findings

1. [Primary finding]
2. [Secondary finding]
3. [Tertiary finding]

Immediate Actions Required

• [Action 1]
• [Action 2]

Long-term Recommendations

1. [Recommendation with timeline]
2. [Recommendation with timeline]

Tool Comparison Template

Tool Comparison Matrix

Best Practices

• Regular cadence - Assess quarterly at minimum

• Track trends - Compare assessments over time

• User feedback - Include qualitative input

• Trial before commit - Use free tiers to evaluate

• Document decisions - Record why tools kept/cancelled

• Consider switching costs - Factor in workflow disruption

Related Skills

• background-service-manager - For running assessment scripts

• session-start-routine - Includes tool health checks

Version History

• 2.0.0 (2026-01-02): Upgraded to v2 template - added Quick Start, When to Use, Execution Checklist, Error Handling, Metrics sections; enhanced frontmatter with version, category, related_skills

• 1.0.0 (2024-10-15): Initial release with subscription inventory, usage analysis, cost-effectiveness reporting, recommendation framework