Google was literally overwhelmed with ChatGPT, because the software giant was suddenly confronted with serious competition for its search engine. Now the company is looking for an answer.
Microsoft’s new Bing search, into which ChatGPT is directly integrated, is set to start soon. The AI uses natural language to answer questions formulated by users in a dialog-based manner. The results are often more precise and comprehensive than those of a search engine like Google. The company therefore brought founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page back on board to rethink its own AI strategy. Now the Google leadership seems to have found a quick solution: “Bard”.
Google introduces chatbot “Bard”.
In a post on the Google blog, CEO Sundar Pichai announces the chatbot “Bard”. The company has been working on AI-supported systems with Google AI and DeepMind for years. So far, however, these have not been accessible to the public. With Bard, that’s about to change.
In 2021, Google presented the first generation of its neural language model LaMDA (Language Model for Dialogue Applications). The chatbot Bard should make use of this model and be able to answer user questions in a natural, dialog-oriented way. Unlike earlier versions of ChatGPT, however, Bard can access information from the Internet and thus also deal with current topics. This puts the AI in direct competition with Microsoft’s new Bing search, which accesses the next generation of ChatGPT, which can also access the Internet.
Bard is now available for pre-testers. In the coming weeks, however, the public should also have access to the chatbot. However, Google is only releasing a smaller part of its LaMDA data for the time being. The smaller language model takes up less computing resources. However, depending on user usage, the company can release additional LaMDA capacities.
More AI features are coming to Google search
The company is also announcing new AI-powered Google Search features. These should be able to break down “complex information from multiple perspectives into formats that are easy to digest”. As an example, Pichai cites the question of whether “piano or guitar is easier to learn” and which takes more practice. These features will soon be available to Google Search users.