Google's NotebookLM can now summarize YouTube videos and audio files
Google has introduced new features to its AI note-taking and research assistant, NotebookLM. The updates include the ability to summarize YouTube videos and audio files, as well as create shareable AI-generated audio discussions. Initially unveiled at Google's I/O developer conference last year, NotebookLM was first made available in the US before expanding to India, the UK, and over 200 other countries.
User base expands beyond education sector
Originally, NotebookLM was primarily used by educators and learners. However, the tool has seen a significant shift in its user base, now attracting more individuals from a workplace environment. Raiza Martin, a senior product manager for AI at Google Labs, revealed that the tool's users are now roughly split between educators and learners (50%), and business professionals (50%).
New features aim to enhance network effect
The growing popularity of NotebookLM among different demographics has prompted the team to introduce new features. These updates aim to enhance its network effect and increase its appeal among various user groups. One such feature is the Audio Overview, which allows users to convert their documents into engaging audio discussions and share them via a public URL.
Extended support for YouTube, audio files
In addition to existing support for Google Docs, text files, Google Slides, PDFs, and web pages, NotebookLM now also supports YouTube videos as well as audio files like .mp3 and .wav. These new features enable users to extract key points from YouTube videos and generate insights from their audio recordings. Martin emphasized that every new feature added to the tool is based on user feedback. NotebookLM is powered by Gemini 1.5 Pro, Google's multimodal large language model.
NotebookLM's global expansion and privacy assurance
While the majority of its usage remains in the US, Japan has emerged as a significant market for NotebookLM. Google assures that all information uploaded to NotebookLM remains private and is not used for training AI models. To use this tool, users must be at least 18 years old. NotebookLM is currently restricted to the web, but Martin hinted that mobile apps could arrive next year.
