Google I/O 2023 Highlights AI Progress: PaLM 2 Challenges ChatGPT And Introduces Cutting-Edge AI-Powered Tools

The tech world wasn’t disappointed with Alphabet Inc’s GOOG GOOGL Google I/O, the annual developer conference, with a volley of announcements featuring AI advancements and new products.

Immersive Experiences And Smart Editing In Google Maps And Photos: Maps has a new "Immersive View for Routes" feature, offering real-time traffic simulations, bike lane details, and parking information.

Meanwhile, Google's Magic Editor feature now uses AI for complex photo edits, including repositioning subjects and filling in gaps.

PaLM 2, Powering Google’s AI Future: One of the most significant announcements was PaLM 2, Google’s newest large language model. It will be the backbone for the company’s AI features, including the Bard chat tool. Bard, now available in 180+ countries in English, is also launching in Japanese and Korean, with plans to support 40 languages soon.

Workspace Innovations: The AI influence extends to Google’s Workspace suite. The AI-powered automatic table generation in Sheets, and image creation in Slides and Meet, are some of the key highlights. MusicLM, an experimental AI tool that generates music from text prompts, was another reveal.

Read also: Bard AI Nipping At ChatGPT’s Heels: Analyst Highlights Google’s Progress In Closing Performance Gap

Revolutionizing Search: The biggest shakeup is undoubtedly in Google's search engine. The Search Generative Experience (SGE) integrates an AI chatbot’s responses into search results. The feature will initially roll out to English users in the U.S. as an experiment, with plans to eventually reach all of Google's users.

Duet AI: Google’s Workspace also got a boost with Duet AI, the new name for its generative AI capabilities. Duet will be integrated into various apps including Gmail, Sheets, Slides, and Meet. In Gmail, the ‘help me write’ feature leverages AI to draft emails, a feature also set to appear in Google Docs.

PaLM 2 vs GPT-4: The I/O also served as a platform for Google’s response to its competitor, OpenAI’s GPT-4, with the unveiling of PaLM 2.

Google stated that PaLM 2 is faster, more efficient, and performs better than its predecessors, with a comprehensive understanding of idioms in dozens of languages.

Hardware: Google’s mobile lineup is expanding with the Pixel 7a, Pixel Tablet and Pixel Fold, each offered at varying price points.

The $499 Pixel 7a, now available for pre-order, has an improved display, wireless charging and enhanced camera performance thanks to the Tensor G2 chip.

The practicality focused Pixel Tablet, also available for $499, sports the Tensor G2 processor, a nano-ceramic coating and a wireless charging dock that converts it into a smart home speaker.

Google also unveiled the Pixel Fold, touted as the market’s thinnest foldable smartphone. Priced from $1,799, it features dual screens with 120Hz refresh rate, unique applications for its folding form factor and the Tensor G2 chip for improved machine learning and photo editing capabilities.

Price Action: Shares of Google are trading 4.15% higher to $112.42 at the time of publication on Wednesday, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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