Google Speeds Up Efforts to Rival Microsoft in AI Search
Google has fast-tracked the development of an AI-based web search service.
- Google is facing the heat from Microsoft now that the latter’s investment in OpenAI is paying off.
- The search giant seems to be working on a project called Magi to catch up to the Windows maker’s AI-driven leap in the online search space when the latter integrated ChatGPT with Bing.
According to a New York Times report, Google has fast-tracked the development of AI-based services, including Magi, that offer far greater personalization than its existing online search service. To this end, the company has approximately 160 designers, engineers, and executives working in sprint rooms.
Reportedly, Google went into “code red” in December 2022 when ChatGPT was launched. Google responded by launching Bard, an AI chatbot to rival ChatGPT, in February 2023. It sure is the online advertising company’s way of making up for the lost time and ensuring it stays at the top.
However, Google seems to have caught itself on the back foot, given that its $162.45 billion search business (2022) was threatened in March 2023 when Samsung tried replacing Google with the AI-powered Bing as a default search engine on its devices.
Android is the mainstay of Samsung smartphones, so the company considering Bing didn’t sit well with Googlers, the Times reported. It may dent Google’s revenue by as much as $3 billion.
Google has been at the forefront of AI development, including AI accelerator Tensor Processing Unit for neural network machine learning, LaMDA (the same conversational AI that Google techie Blake Lemoine claimed had achieved sentience), and more.
See More: Release of AutoGPT and Improvements to Bard Challenge ChatGPT Supremacy
However, the company cannot sit back now if it wants to maintain its dominant position in the online search space. As of March 2023, Google handled 93.17% of online searches. “The race starts today, and we’re going to move and move fast,” Nadella said during the launch of the revamped Bing.
Google Bard’s February launch wasn’t all that spectacular. Google’s parent company, Alphabet, lost $100 billion in market capitalization following Bard’s release after the tool incorrectly answered a space-related question. The company has since recovered its share price.
Google said Magi can “answer questions about software coding and write code based on a user’s request.” Magi is currently being tested and queried by Googlers. According to internal planning documents, the company is looking at a May launch, possibly during Google I/O 2023. More features are expected to follow by fall.
Besides Bard and Magi, Google is also working on several services to stop Microsoft from usurping its dominance in web-based services. These include GIFI, an AI-based image generation tool designed to be a part of Google Image search; Tivoli Tutor, which leverages AI for a conversational experience designed for language tutoring; and Searchalong, a Chrome-based AI chatbot akin to how ChatGPT is integrated into Microsoft Edge.
All of these tools are in various stages of development.
Lara Levin, a Google spokeswoman, stated, “Not every brainstorm deck or product idea leads to a launch, but as we’ve said before, we’re excited about bringing new AI-powered features to search and will share more details soon.”
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