MSK now offers employees access to Open WebUI, a source for several chatbots available for workplace use. But if you think this tool can be used for searching the literature, think again.
What is Open WebUI and How Do I Access It?
This portal is “a proprietary, user-friendly, and PHI-secure portal where staff can access a wide array of popular large language models (LLMs) as well as tools for experienced developers behind the MSK firewall.”
To access:
- Log on to the VPN or be onsite
- Visit https://chat.aicopilot.aws.mskcc.org/
- Select “Continue with MSK PingID” if prompted
- You’ll then get the message “Account Activation Pending” followed by “Contact Admin for WebUI Access.”
No further action is needed and contacting admin isn’t necessary. You will not get confirmation once your account has been activated. But once it has, visiting the URL while onsite or on the VPN will take you to the tools.
Open WebUI includes the following chatbots:
Chatbot | Description |
Amazon Nova Pro | A reasoning model for general analysis and summarization. Knowledge cutoff date: Unknown |
Claude Sonnet 3.5 | A general-use model by Anthropic. Effective with code generation. Knowledge cutoff date: April 15th, 2024 |
Claude Sonnet 3.7 | Improved version of Sonnet 3.5, and also targets code generation as a differentiator. Knowledge cutoff date: October 2024 |
Claude Sonnet 4 | High intelligence and balanced performance. Good for complex coding/debugging, detailed explanations, and documentation review. Detailed prompts recommended. Knowledge cutoff date: January 2024 |
DeepSeek R1 | A reasoning model for logical inference, math problem-solving, code generation, or text-based clinical reasoning. Cannot process images. Knowledge cutoff date: October 2023 |
OpenAI o1 | A reasoning model that thinks before it answers, making it suitable for deep analysis, task breakdown, or image-based clinical analysis. Knowledge cutoff date: October 2023 |
OpenAI GPT-4o | A general-purpose model that balances quality, speed, and cost-effectiveness. Knowledge cutoff date: October 2023 |
You can toggle between tools on the top left of the page and click the “set as default” option under a tool name after you’ve selected it.
Why Can’t I Use These Tools to Perform a Literature Search?
When you ask Amazon Nova Pro to perform a literature search, it appears to do so:

However, a follow-up question reveals that all is not as it seems, and that any citations provided are likely not real:

Other tools are clearer about their limitations from the start:


What Should I Do Instead?
There are AI tools that specialize in searching the literature, but even these are typically limited to open-source texts. Use these tools cautiously, perhaps in the brainstorming and planning stages of a project.
As an alternative, we welcome you to contact us to request a literature search.
Want to learn more about the use of AI for literature searching? Sign up for our next class on August 19 from 12-1 pm.