Google's AI turns your research into podcast featuring virtual hosts
What's the story
Google has introduced an innovative feature that can transform user research into artificial intelligence (AI)-generated podcasts. This experimental function is integrated within NotebookLM, an AI note-taking application launched by Google in 2023. The unique aspect of this feature is its ability to create two AI "hosts" who discuss the content provided by users. These hosts are designed to summarize material, draw connections between topics, and engage in back-and-forth banter.
User interaction
NotebookLM's AI hosts offer an engaging learning experience
The new feature enhances NotebookLM's existing capabilities, which allow users to interact with their notes, transcripts, and other research documents. The app currently employs Google's Gemini AI model to summarize user research. This new function is essentially an audio version of that feature. Google assures that the AI hosts will indeed "banter" with each other, adding a conversational element to the summarization process.
AI conversation
AI hosts mimic human podcasters in conversation style
The AI hosts are designed to mimic human podcasters in their conversation style. For instance, during a 10-minute-long overview about the invention of the lightbulb, they engaged in a lighthearted discussion emphasizing that Thomas Edison wasn't the sole inventor and concluded that "in the end, it's actually a story about teamwork, making the dream work." The hosts even incorporated modern phrases like "messy as heck" into their dialogue.
Learning experience
Google's AI hosts aim to make learning more engaging
Despite their human-like conversational style, the AI hosts do have some quirks. They occasionally spell out certain words and phrases, and use unconventional descriptions such as referring to platinum as "bling bling metal." These peculiarities do not detract from the overall learning experience but rather add a unique touch to it. However, it remains uncertain how these hosts would handle serious topics like cancer or war while maintaining their lighthearted tone.