Many analysts have already decided that ChatGPT will make Google Search irrelevant. And it seems Google itself thinks so, to the point of making a rapid U-turn in the company’s strategy about approaching artificial intelligence and chatbots. Google is clearly concerned of OpenAI’s machine learning algorithms, so much so that the current Alphabet leadership called back its co-founders into action. According to a NY Times report, Google has been shaken out of its traditional routine and is now working for a faster, company-wide AI adoption. Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet/Google, has “invited” Larry Page and Sergey Brin to offer “advice” about the new strategy, a new active involvement four years after the company founders left their day-to-day managing jobs into Pichai’s capable hands. The NY Times reports that Page and Brin, who remain the controlling shareholders of the Google empire, have worked together with the current leadership to design and approve new plans, pitch ideas and talk about the entire ChatGPT matter. Google has always had a conservative approach to AI, fearing the reputational harm a half-baked implementation could bring to the company’s search business.
However, now that the impressive work made by OpenAI labs – and likely the new commercial offers coming from competitors like Microsoft – have imposed the chatbot technology as the new Silicon Valley buzzword, a change of plans is required. Google will have a lot of new AI-based stuff to show during the next I/O event in May, the Times reports. Mountain View could unveil over 20 AI-based projects for consumers and professionals alike. The products shown during a closed meeting include an image-generation algorithm that can create and edit artwork, a product prototype-testing app, and a set of web-based enterprise tools to create new AI prototypes called MakerSuite. Google will also have its own code-generation tool called PaLM-Coder 2 and an AI assistant for creating smartphone apps named Colab. As for a proper chatbot-augmented web search product, Google is currently working on a demo, but there are no defined plans to show it to the world yet. The company is seemingly working hard to ensure the technology will get facts right, with no harm to safety or misinformation spreading.
