Select Pixel users can now try Google's AI chatbot, Bard
Google is now giving early access to Bard—its AI chatbot—to select Pixel users. As per 9to5Google, the testing is being expanded to Pixel superfans, a community of Pixel smartphone users. The company was earlier testing the beta version of Bard as part of the Trusted Tester program. Bard, which was announced in February, has not been made available for public use as yet.
Why does this story matter?
Google's conversational AI chatbot Bard is a key rival to Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT. The company has been testing its chatbot internally since its release in February. Given that the testing has now been expanded to the Pixel superfans community, it appears that Google's chatbot could soon enter the public beta testing phase.
Some Pixel superfans are receiving early access to Bard
Some Pixel superfans are receiving mail from Google asking them to try the tool and provide feedback. A part of the mail reads: "Meet Bard, an early experiment by Google that lets you collaborate with generative AI. We'd like to offer you—a member of our Pixel Superfans community—early access so you can get started as soon as Bard launches, and share your feedback."
The Pixel superfans club is currently limited to the US
However, at present, the Pixel superfans club is limited to the US. Only users who receive an invite from Google can join the group. Pixel superfans "may get surprise perks, such as exclusive offers, occasional gifts, and special access to events and experiences," according to the official blog. They will also be "among the first to know about new products and features."
Here's more about Bard
Bard, which is based on LaMDA (Language Model for Dialogue Applications) technology, can answer queries in a conversational manner. The AI-powered chatbot sources real-time information from the web to generate responses. On the other hand, ChatGPT has been trained on data that was mostly collected up until 2021. It is based on GPT-3.5 (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) and is available for public use.
Bard made a factual error when asked about JWST's discoveries
Bard's rigorous testing might have to do with the factual error it committed. When asked about the latest discoveries of the James Webb Space Telescope, Bard said, "JWST took the very first pictures of a planet outside of our solar system." This is incorrect since the first pictures of exoplanets were captured by ESO's Very Large Telescope in 2004.
Bard is soon expected to be more widely available
During the launch of Google Bard, CEO Sundar Pichai claimed that we would soon see Google Bard leveraged to enhance Google Search. Although there is no definitive timeline as yet, Bard is expected to be showcased at the I/O 2023 event in May this year.
