AI-Learning Assistant (MERN)

The AI Learning Assistant is a full-stack web application designed to transform traditional PDF documents into interactive, AI-powered learning experiences. Built using the MERN stack (MongoDB, Express, React, Node.js) and styled with Tailwind CSS, the platform leverages Google Gemini AI to help users study smarter and more efficiently.

Users can upload PDF documents and instantly unlock powerful learning tools such as AI chat, auto-generated summaries, flashcards, and quizzes—all tailored to the document’s content. The application also includes progress tracking to help learners monitor their understanding and improvement over time.

This project focuses on enhancing productivity, improving comprehension, and making self-study more engaging through intelligent automation and a clean, modern UI.

Project Setup

Prerequisites

• Node.js
• Mongodb Atlas
• Google Gemini AI key

Install dependencies for frontend and backend separately

Frontend:

  npm install

  npm i axios lucide-react moment react-hot-toast react-markdown react-router-dom react-syntax-highlighter remark-gfm

Backend:

  npm install

  npm i bcryptjs cors dotenv express express-validator jsonwebtoken mongoose multer pdf-parse @google/genai 

Environment Variables

Backend

• Create a .env file in the backend directory.
• Add the following variables with appropriate values

MONGODB_URI= "-------- Paste Your Mongo URI Here --------"

PORT= "-------- your PORT --------"

JWT_SECRET= "-------- Anything --------"

JWT_EXPIRE= "-------- ex(7d) --------"

NODE_ENV= "-------- development --------"

MAX_FILE_SIZE= "-------- 10485760 --------"

GEMINI_API_KEY= "-------- Paste Google Gemini AI API key --------"

Running Development Servers

Start the backend server:

• Navigate to the backend directory: cd backend
• Start the server: npm run server

Start the frontend server:

• Navigate to the frontend & admin directory: cd frontend / cd admin
• Start the server: npm run dev