Google Unveils Enhanced Bard AI Chat Service With Deeper Integration.
By Caroline Ameh
Google has introduced significant updates to Bard, its experimental conversational AI chat service.
The company’s Communication and Public Relations Manager for West Africa, Mr. Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, revealed that Google was rolling out an improved version of Bard, boasting enhanced capabilities.
This updated model of Bard according to him is now tightly integrated with various Google apps and services, offering users more helpful and tailored responses.
Bard, initially unveiled on February 6, 2023, by Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, shares similarities with ChatGPT but stands out for its ability to source information directly from the web, allowing it to provide precise responses tailored to the user’s needs.
Mr. Kola-Ogunlade explained that this latest update elevates Bard’s capacity to customize responses, making it easier for users to bring their ideas to life. The chatbot’s “Google it” feature has also been refined for improved performance.
He further elaborated on the introduction of “Bard Extensions” in English, a novel way to interact and collaborate with Bard. These extensions empower Bard to discover and display pertinent information from everyday Google tools like Gmail, Docs, Drive, Google Maps, YouTube, and Google Flights and Hotels.
Even when the required information spans across multiple apps and services, Bard can seamlessly retrieve it. For instance, planning a trip to the Grand Canyon becomes a smoother experience, with Bard fetching dates from Gmail, providing real-time flight and hotel information, offering Google Maps directions, and even suggesting YouTube videos of things to do in one continuous conversation.
Mr. Kola-Ogunlade also emphasized Google’s commitment to safeguarding user privacy when using Workplace Extensions saying content from Gmail, Docs, and Drive will remain confidential and not be exposed to human reviewers, utilized for targeted ads, or utilized for Bard model training. Users retain full control over their privacy settings and can disable extensions at any time.
Moreover, Bard’s “Google it” button now allows users to fact-check responses easily. By clicking on the ‘G’ icon, Bard can evaluate the response and determine if there is corroborating or contradicting information available on the web. Users can click on highlighted phrases to explore further details.
