Google unveils an experimental conversation artificial intelligence service called the bard
In this article, we are going to explain how Google unveiled an experimental conversation AI service called the bard.
Google unveils an experimental conversation AI service called Bard on February 6. The new release is an attempt to catch up with the wildly popular chatbot ChatGPT from Microsoft-backed firm OpenAI.
The service will initially be available to “trusted testers” before becoming more widely available to the public in the coming weeks, according to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai in a blog post.
Pichai previously had teased the launch of the service during the company’s earnings conference call last week, saying that consumers will be able to use its language models “as a companion to search”.
This announcement comes as the tech giant’s flagship search business faces renewed competition from Microsoft, which recently made a reported $10 billion investment in the upstart artificial intelligence (AI) research lab OpenAI and plans to add AI capabilities across its range of software products, including Google rival Bing.
Similar to ChatGPT, Bard will also provide detailed answers to user prompts such as “compare two Oscar-nominated movies,” “plan a friend’s baby shower”, or “get lunch ideas based on what’s in your fridge”.
Because ChatGPT’s knowledge is currently limited to internet data until 2021, answering questions about recent events could give the service an advantage. Pichai stated in the blog post that Bard “draws on information from the web to provide fresh, high-quality responses.”
“Bard can be a creative outlet and a launchpad for curiosity, allowing you to explain discoveries from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to a 9-year-old or learn more about the best strikers in football right now,” he explained.
LaMDA (Language Model for Dialogue Applications), a large language model developed and released by Google in 2021, powers Bard. Pichai stated that Bard will be released initially on a “lightweight” version of LaMDA that will require significantly less computing power, allowing them to scale to more users and solicit more feedback.
“We’ll combine external feedback with our internal testing to ensure Bard’s responses meet a high standard for quality, safety, and grounding in real-world data,” Pichai said.
In addition to Bard, Google will allow developers to build on top of their existing AI models. Individual developers, creators, and enterprises will be able to test their Generative Language API, which will be powered by LaMDA initially, with other language models to follow, beginning next month.
Pichai stated that they intend to create a suite of tools and APIs that will make it easier for others to build more “innovative” AI applications in the future.
Google Cloud announced a partnership with Anthropic, an AI startup founded by former OpenAI researchers that are developing Claude, an AI chatbot. According to the Financial Times, Google will invest $300 million in the startup in late 2022.
Google’s cloud division also collaborates with Canadian AI startup Cohere and NYSE-listed AI software firm C3.ai.
Pichai also emphasized how the company was reoriented around AI six years ago and how they have been using AI to improve their search engine for several years.
This is because, according to him, people are increasingly turning to Google for deeper insights and understanding of complex topics, which would otherwise require a lot of effort to figure out everything they need to know.
“People want to investigate frequently a wide range of opinions or perspectives. AI can be useful in these situations by synthesizing insights for questions with no single correct answer “Pichai stated.
New AI features in Google Search will simplify complex information and multiple points of view for consumers.
People will soon see AI-powered features in Google Search that distill complex information and multiple perspectives into easy-to-digest formats, allowing them to quickly understand the big picture and learn more from the web, according to him.
“Whether it’s using AI to radically transform our products or making these powerful tools available to others, we’ll continue to be bold with innovation while remaining responsible,” Pichai said.
