Google is taking on OpenAI’s ChatGPT with their own conversational AI, Bard. This experimental service is currently being tested by a group of “trusted testers” external to Google.
While we really don’t know much about Bard so far, in the name arena alone, I think Google wins. Who wouldn’t want to talk to an AI service named Bard? It’s like having a virtual Shakespearean in your pocket—who hasn’t dreamt of that? (Let’s just hope Bard’s sonnets don’t turn out like Tay’s.)
Bard will apparently seek to combine the breadth of the world’s knowledge, with the power of large language models, drawing on information from the web to provide fresh, high-quality responses. (Good luck with that, Bard.) While it’s still in an experimental phase, Google is continuing to improve Bard’s quality and speed—both of which continue to be common issues with other AI models.
Knowing Google, Bard will always be in an experimental phase—and that’s a good thing.
Combining the power of AI, with the creativity of human conversation, with the search engine with over 93% market share is going to be a pretty big deal.
While there’s been no word yet on how members of the general public like you and I can test Bard, it’s apparently able to generate its responses based on current, real-time data. (ChatGPT’s knowledge only extends to September 2021, meaning it’s stuck in a world where Chinese balloons are for weather, Alex Murdaugh is free, and “Stay” by Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber is the #1 song in the world.)
Otherwise, Google seems to be taking a mostly similar approach to ChatGPT thus far. However, it is early and the user experience and interfaces will likely evolve rapidly.
Again, as for how the general public can test Bard, well, that’s still a mystery. It’s also unclear at this point how attribution and citations for the information in its answers will be provided. ChatGPT can’t see links, nor can it read webpages—either a permanent shortcoming, something that will be added in the future, or a way to prevent rampant plagiarism. Well, “as rampant” plagiarism anyway.
They could always just follow other tech companies’ lead and blame the internet for all the information it spits out. “Sorry, we didn’t write the article on that affiliate site that said it unsafe to change electrical outlets with the power turned off—you did.”
Still, it’s promising to see that the biggest and best of the search engines is integrating human-like question-and-answer responses into search. This… will probably change everything.
Although Google executives say Bard isn’t just about search, they’ve also said that they “can’t stop users from trying to use it like search.”
Managing AI technology like Bard will be a challenge, but if done right, it could transform the way we interact with search engines and ultimately make our lives easier. Who knows, maybe one day we’ll be able to have meaningful conversations with our new virtual assistants about anything and everything under the sun.
It’s interesting to see how Google is trying to keep up with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, but let’s be real, we all know who the real chatbot champions are. (ChatGPT wrote that last sentence.)
Who knows what the future of AI and marketing holds?
Google, probably.
More and more tech giants are investing heavily in this area. It remains to be seen whether Bard will be a game-changer for AI marketing, another AI experiment, or the AI bot that finally becomes sentient, goes rogue, and starts the war between AI and humanity. Regardless, we’re excited to see the possibilities that AI-powered conversation can bring to the world of search engine marketing.
Will we be able to have meaningful conversations with AI soon? Or will they continue being like that one friend who always responds with a meme?
For now, we’ll just have to wait and see what Google has in store for Bard, and whether it can live up to the hype.
With Bing soon to be integrating ChatGPT, the AI arms race between Google and Bing is heating up. (Yahoo is reportedly still hard at work on their rumored Mechanical Turk machine, but they’re having trouble with the SCSI port. And let’s not forget about the dark horse in the AI race: Jeeves.)
AI continues to revolutionize the way we interact with search engines and online content. And search engine marketers and business owners have to stay informed about the latest developments to ensure they’re using the most effective strategies to reach their target audience. Consider subscribing to The King of Search blog to keep current with the latest news, trends, and strategies in SEO, content marketing, and digital marketing.
Main Article Image Credit: Rokas – stock.adobe.com
