The world of artificial intelligence (AI) continues to grow rapidly throughout the digital space. The most recent news has drawn our attention to the likes of ChatGTP, created by OpenAI. This introduction of AI software into the search market has impacted it tremendously. To be able to ask a question or prompt, and have the AI produce an answer in various formats in a matter of seconds is quite impressive. It was only a matter of time before Google and Microsoft stepped into the ring of AI search technology. Adapting and innovating the way we will make searches in the future. The question is, who will come out on top? Let’s take a deeper look into Google and Microsoft’s recent announcements of their latest AI search software.
On February 6th, 2023, Google introduced their newest AI software “Bard”. Powered by their Language Model for Dialogue Application (LaMDA), Bard is a conversational AI service that seeks to combine the knowledge, power, creativity, and intelligence of LaMDA to provide high-quality responses. Bard will draw information from the internet and act as an outlet for creativity and curiosity.
The power of Bard has no age limits when it comes to your topic of choice. It is capable of explaining new discoveries from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to a 9-year-old. Or help you learn more about the best players in soccer right now, and then providing you with drills to build your skills. Bard allows you to deepen your understanding of information and turn it into useful knowledge more efficiently. For Google, people are increasingly turning to their services for deeper insights such as “is the piano or guitar easier to learn, and how much practice does each need?”. Bard is capable of giving you those answers.
As Google continues to improve on Bard, AI technology will grow in the Search market. Helping users gain insight into questions where there is no right answer by providing multiple perspectives so you can see the big picture. As of now, Bard is in the testing phase, however, Google plans to begin rolling out these new Search features soon.
Just days after Google’s announcement of Bard, Microsoft announced that they will be bringing ChatGTP-like features to their search engines, Bing, and Edge. This new chatbot technology has been specifically designed for the search experience. During the Microsoft announcement event, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella claimed that the search engine experience hasn’t changed in 20 years, and it was time to adapt.
With this newly introduced AI chatbot, Microsoft has implemented a new way of working with OpenAI called the “Prometheus Model”, which enhances the relevancy of answers, annotates them, and keeps them up to date to ensure fresh, high-quality answers. While no official name as of yet, this chatbot is conversational based that allows users to ask follow-up questions based on their previous questions and the answer that was provided to them. This AI chatbot runs on a new user experience with an expanded search box that accepts up to 1,000 characters.
Users can find this chatbot on the main search engine page of Bing, while on Edge, the Bing chatbot can be found as a sidebar widget for users to engage with. As the chatbot continues to grow, it will be able to provide even more features to its responses. In addition, the search index has also been improved by integrating the AI model into the search algorithm.
However, unlike Google, the new Bing chatbot is currently available for a limited-time preview for everyone to try. To access this, you will need the new Bing. Go to bing.com/new and click on “join the waitlist”.
Trying it myself, here is the result I received from asking it “I need to throw a dinner party for 6 people who are vegetarian. Can you suggest a 3-course menu with a chocolate dessert?”.
While it was only a preview, the answer was quite fast and relevant to what I asked. If you were not pleased with your suggestion, there was a “Let’s Chat” button to continue your conversation.
Although it may seem like an easy way for you to create content or write emails within a matter of seconds, you should still be cautious when using AI. Since this technology is very new, it is not perfect. With this rapid increase of urgency to implement AI into the search market, the consequences become deeper and wider as the review period becomes much smaller. This means that AI technology will not be as polished as you would hope.
In addition, the answers you get from your prompt may not be exactly what you are looking for and may not even be true at all. AI relies on information that can be found throughout the web and reiterates it into its own version. However, not all information that you find is correct. This can lead to a flood of lies and alternative facts in the digital space. As well, AI tends to lack expression and be overly detailed.
For content writers, you will not have a unique voice and will over-explain simple concepts. Readers want to get straight to the point. As AI continues to become more available to the public, we will find even more disadvantages and complaints with using technology. Technology is never perfect.
Just recently, Google’s Bard gave a wrong answer in one of its ads, causing Google shares to go down.
While it seems that both Google and Microsoft insist they have created a new unique product for users to use to their advantage, both AI chatbots seem to work very similarly. It’s just a matter of who will succeed more greatly.
It’s key to remember that these AI search software and chatbots are still in training so do not expect them to be perfect. It will be common to see misinformation and receive information that you were not specifically looking for. This may seem an easy shortcut to cut down on time spent creating content or doing the aspects of your job that you don’t like, however, be cautious. This is not a perfect technology and comes with many disadvantages.
If you are struggling to create content or need to revamp your marketing strategy, IGV has you covered. Contact us and let’s talk.
AUTHOR: Stuart Silcox
