Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Google products

“All businesses and organizations are thinking about how to drive transformation. That’s why we’re focused on helping others innovate through AI by making it easy to access and scalable.” – Sundar Pichai – CEO of Google

Source: Freepik

 

But before talking about Generative AI, what exactly is AI?

“AI is a broad term often used to describe all kinds of advanced computer systems. I prefer to talk more specifically about ‘machine learning’. Most of what we see in AI today is actually machine learning, i.e.: endowing computer systems with the ability to learn from examples.

We call machines programmed to learn from examples ‘neural networks’. One of the main ways they learn is by being given lots of examples, like knowing what’s showing up in a picture – we call that classification.” – Douglas Eck – Senior Director of Search at Google

Language Models

Language models are another type of neural network, which basically predict which word comes next in a sequence of words, by training with large volumes of text.

They are already present in Smart Compose and Smart Reply in Gmail, for example, and also fuel Bard, powered by a large language model, which is a type of machine learning model that has become known for its ability to generate language that feels natural.

Generative AI

A generative model takes what it has learned from the examples shown and creates something entirely new based on that information. The Large language models (LLMs) are a type of Generative AI, that generate new combinations of text through natural-sounding language.

Douglas Eck believes that Generative AI is a huge potential for the creative field: “think about removing some of the repetitive work in mundane tasks, like creating drafts, rather than encroaching on your innate creativity”.

How does Google approach machine learning development?

According to Douglas Eck:

“We are and have been taking our time to do this carefully. If we build a product, we want to make sure it can be useful and avoid harm. In 2018, we were among the first companies to develop and publish the AI Principles and to implement an internal governance structure to follow them. Our AI work today involves the AI group at Google and many other groups focused on avoiding bias, toxicity and other harms during the development of emerging technologies.”

Google launches Bard to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Bing Chat

In March 2023, Google launched the Bard chatbot aiming to boost productivity, creativity and curiosity, and of course, strengthen its presence in the AI chatbot space while maintaining its dominance in the search engine market.

Powered by LLM, a lightweight and optimized version of LaMDA, and designed as a complementary experience to Google Search, Bard allows users to verify their answers or explore sources on the web.

Access to Bard is initially launching in the US and the UK, and will then expand to other countries.

Generative AI in Google products

According to Google itself, thanks to Generative AI, the company is reinventing all its major products with a bold and responsible approach.

Here’s a look at AI in Google’s products, including Search.

Gen App Builder

Gen App Builder allows developers to quickly and easily create chat and search applications.

Generative AI support in Vertex AI

Generative AI support in Vertex AI expands the Google machine learning development platform with access to Google base models and others to build, customize, and deploy language models.

Google Search

Google SGE

The new generative search experience will be available in Search Labs, Chrome for desktop and the Google app (for Android and iOS), for now only in the United States (at the moment, only in English).

Google Search Generative Experience (SGE) adds generative AI capabilities to Google Search results.

This article published in Search Engine Journal in May 2023 looks at how Google SGE handles search queries, prioritizes publishers, and reshapes the future of search and information discovery.

Creating ads on the Google Search network

With Generative AI, it will be possible to simplify the process of creating ads on the Google Search network. 

When adding the landing page to the company’s website, the AI will summarize the page, generating keywords, titles, descriptions, images and other relevant resources for the advertising campaign. Once this is done, the user will be able to review and edit the content before implementing it.

AI will also help in creating titles that are more attractive to users, so ad performance tends to improve.

Texts, images and other personalized resources can also be created with Generative AI, through Performance Max. For this, the marketer will only have to indicate the website URL for Google AI to start learning more about the brand and then create campaigns.

Google says it remains committed to transparency, so ads generated by Generative AI (Generative Search Experience or SGE) will have their ‘sponsored’ labels in bold black text to distinguish them from organic searches.

For the user, with the power of Generative AI, Google’s search tool is even better, providing more information and context for their searches.

In addition, shopping will become easier and simpler as the user, when searching for a product, will see an instant response of important facts to consider, and products within budget. Plus: product descriptions, including relevant and current reviews, ratings, prices and product images.

Google Cloud

The Duet AI for Google Cloud assists cloud users in contextual code completion: it offers suggestions tailored to your code base, generates entire functions in real time, and helps with code reviews and inspections.

For developers who want to create generative AI applications more simply and efficiently, Google introduced new templates and base features in its AI products.

Google Workspace

Google is also bringing new Generative AI capabilities to trusted testers through Workspace Labs in its Google Workspace apps, such as:

• In Gmail and Google Docs: adding the ability to draft replies that consider the context of the existing email thread, including on mobile devices. To use the so-called “Help me write” feature, just type the command of what you want, click create and a full draft will appear.
• In Google Slides and Meet: Duet AI gives users tools to easily generate images from text descriptions. Custom images in slides can bring the story to life, and in Meet they can be used to create custom backgrounds.
• In Google Sheets: automating data sorting and creating custom templates, helping the user to analyze and organize data faster.

Google Maps

Immersive View for routes is coming to Google Maps, expected to launch in the coming months in Amsterdam, Berlin, Dublin, Florence, Las Vegas, London, Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Paris, Seattle, San Francisco, San Jose, Tokyo and Venice.

Google Maps is even more visual, with features like Live View search and immersive view for places. Now, with Immersive Vision for routes, it will be possible to visualize each section of a route before leaving, whether by car, on foot or by bicycle. The user can also check the air quality, traffic and weather and how they are changing over time.

And there are also new features for developers to create immersive experiences on the platform. With the new Aerial View API, already available in preview, you can easily integrate a 3D panoramic video of any point of interest into your apps, giving users more visual information about a particular place.

What’s more, developers who want to make bespoke 3D maps can count on the experimental release of Photorealistic 3D Tiles, via the Map Tiles API, as Google is making available, for the first time, the high-resolution 3D imagery behind Google Earth.

Google Photos

If it was already possible to search your photos for things like people, sea and sunsets, with Magic Editor (expected to be released later this year), you can not only remove unwanted elements, but also recreate parts of objects that do not appear in the original photograph, reposition elements, improve the sky, changing the lighting in the rest of the photo consistently.

Security AI Workbench

In April 2023, Google introduced Security AI Workbench, an industry-first platform based on its new LLM Sec-PaLM security model, which incorporates Google’s unique insights into the ever-evolving threat landscape and is tuned for cybersecurity operations.

Which Present-Future does Generative AI belong to?

Generative AI is proving to be a valuable resource for creating compelling content, synthesizing and organizing information, automating business processes and creating amazing and more fluid experiences for people.

With the world constantly evolving and always faster, the professional who does not keep up with new technologies at the speed demanded, adapting and including these new technologies in their daily work, will end up losing space in a market that is too (and increasingly) competitive.

In this sense, this professional will not lose his job to Generative AI, but to another professional who knows how to use it better.

This logic also applies to companies that do not implement new technologies in their business models, and may become obsolete, lose market share, and even “disappear”.

Many more benefits of Generative AI will come, through collaboration and experimentation over time. ‘Not riding this wave’ is not an option.