• Everyday AI
  • Posts
  • Are Google's new AI updates ACTUALLY good???

Are Google's new AI updates ACTUALLY good???

Google I/O recap, OpenAI and News Corp's media deal, Microsoft Bing outage, Gemini data analysis test and more!

Author

Everyday AI
May 23, 2024

šŸ‘‰ Subscribe Here | šŸ—£ Hire Us To Speak | šŸ¤ Partner with Us | šŸ¤– Grow with GenAI

Outsmart The Future

Today in Everyday AI
6 minute read

šŸŽ™ Daily Podcast Episode: Did Google have too much AI in its recent I/O conference? What do these AI announcements mean for Googleā€™s future and the GenAI world? We break it down. Give it a listen.

šŸ•µļøā€ā™‚ļø Fresh Finds: Google considers buying HubSpot, Stanford updates its Transparency Index, Meta releases guides and tutorials for Llama 3 and is GPT-5 not happening? Read on for Fresh Finds.

šŸ—ž Byte Sized Daily AI News: OpenAI and News Corp's $250M deal, Microsoft Bing outage shuts down search engines and more OpenAI drama unfolds among employees. For that and more, read on for Byte Sized News.

šŸš€ AI In 5: Google Gemini has finally added data analysis! So is it any good and how does it stack up against the competition? Find out here

šŸ§  Learn & Leveraging AI: Google has a history of bad AI deployment and marketing. But is I/O finally the tech giantā€™s big break? Hereā€™s what you need to know about Googleā€™s AI updates. Keep reading for that!

ā†©ļø Donā€™t miss out: Did you miss our last newsletter? We talked about Copilot updates and on-device AI, Amazon to launch conversational Alexa and Humane looking to sell off its Ai Pin. Check it here!

Googleā€™s New AI Updates from I/O: the good, the bad, and the WTF šŸ¤”

Did Google say 'AI' too many times at their I/O conference? 

(Obvi, they used AI to count the number of times they said AI. And it was a lot.)

But real talk ā€“ it's hard to make sense of all of Googleā€™s announcements. With so many new products, updated functionality, and new LLM capabilities, how can you make sense of it all?

Oh.... that's what we're for.

Here are the biggest takeaways from Googleā€™s AI announcements at this yearā€™s I/O.

Join the conversation and ask Jordan questions on Google AI here.

Also on the pod today:

ā€¢ Evaluating Googleā€™s New AI šŸ§
ā€¢ Googleā€™s Impact on GenAI World šŸš€
ā€¢ Concerns Over Google's AI Development and Marketing šŸ˜¬

Itā€™ll be worth your 45 minutes:

Listen on our site:

Click to listen

Subscribe and listen on your favorite podcast platform

Listen on:

Hereā€™s our favorite AI finds from across the web:

New AI Tool Spotlight ā€“ DataGems is an AI copilot for marketing data, Arrange is ChatGPT for your calendar and Usermaven is website & product AI analytics.

Trending in AI ā€“ Google is considering acquiring HubSpot, and the deal could be huge.

AI Models ā€” Cohere launched an open weights model called Aya 23, a multilingual model.

Big Tech ā€“ Google has released Generative AI Ops, a service to help deploy AI in enterprises.

OpenAI - Is GPT-5ā€¦ not happening? This chart suggests the next model may be called something else. And that the growth in the next model from OpenAI could be a mind-boggling jump.

Money in AI - NVIDIA shares have reached a record high after an AI chip forecast demand.

LLMs - Stanford has updated its Foundation Model Transparency Index.

AI Education ā€” Meta just dropped some step-by-step guides for using Llama 3 on your desktop.

AI in Politics ā€“ Colorado has instated a law to regulate the use of AI by employers to eliminate discrimination.

AI Tech - Tesla has reported that in Q1 2024, its autopilot tech is 11x better than the U.S. average in accidents.

Read This - The consultant that was behind the fake Biden AI robocall is facing a $6 million fine and criminal charges.

1. OpenAI Strikes $250 Million Deal with News Corp šŸ“°

In a game-changing move, OpenAI seals a lucrative deal with News Corp valued at over $250 million. This multi-year agreement grants OpenAI access to both current and archived articles from News Corp publications for AI training purposes.

While major media giants like The Associated Press and Financial Times have inked similar deals, some outlets, including The New York Times, have taken legal action against OpenAI for alleged copyright infringement. News Corp will also collaborate closely with OpenAI to uphold the highest standards in journalism.

2. Microsoft Outage Shuts Down Search Engines šŸšØ

A Microsoft outage originating from Bing's API has left users of various search engines like DuckDuckGo and services like Copilot and ChatGPT unable to access search results reliably. The widespread issues began around 3AM ET, impacting not only Microsoft's own search engine but also third-party platforms reliant on Bing's API.

As Microsoft races to isolate the cause of the problem and OpenAI conducts its investigation, the online search landscape faces uncertainty.

3. Microsoft Unveils Phi-3-Silica for Copilot+ PCs āš”ļø

Microsoft has launched Phi-3-Silica, a compact language model designed for Copilot+ PCs' Neural Processing Units (NPUs). With 3.3 billion parameters, Phi-3-Silica boasts lightning-fast performance, utilizing only 1.5 Watts of power while running at 650 tokens per second.

This innovation marks a significant milestone as Windows' first locally deployed language model, promising enhanced user experiences and increased productivity.

4. White House Takes Aim at Nonconsensual AI-Generated Imagery šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡ø

President Biden's administration is cracking down on the spread of abusive AI-generated images, particularly targeting women and children, by urging tech companies to take action. The White House is calling for voluntary cooperation from companies like Apple and Google to curb the creation and monetization of explicit deepfake content.

With concerns rising over the rapid advancement of generative AI tools, the administration is pushing for stricter measures to protect individuals from nonconsensual AI-generated imagery.

5. OpenAI's Equity Drama Unveiled šŸ˜¬

OpenAI employees found themselves in a precarious position as reports surfaced of potential equity clawback threats if they didn't comply with the company's restrictive exit documents. The revelation led to internal turmoil and public apologies from CEO Sam Altman, emphasizing a commitment to not revoke vested equity.

With accusations of high-pressure tactics and questionable clauses in the company's documents, OpenAI faces intense scrutiny over its treatment of ex-employees and the protection of their financial interests.

6. Microsoftā€™s Deal with UAE Raises National Security Concerns šŸ§

Microsoft's President Brad Smith hinted at potential risks in the tech giant's deal with UAE-backed G42, involving the transfer of advanced AI technology components.

The closed-door negotiations have stirred unease among US lawmakers about safeguarding sensitive American technology from potential Chinese espionage interests in the UAE. The deal aims to enhance AI technology in regions like Kenya, with Microsoft investing $15 billion in G42.

Google Gemini Data Analysis: The Good & The Bad

Google has FINALLY added a Data Analysis feature to Gemini.

Weā€™re diving into Google Gemini's capabilities with real data from Google Search Console and seeing how it stacks up against its competitors.

Is it worth the upgrade?

Find out in today's AI in 5.

šŸ¦¾How You Can Leverage:

How many times did Google say AI at their conference? 

About 120 for the AI that counted the number of times AI was mentioned. 

Feels like too many. 

And thatā€™s coming from a group called ā€˜Everyday AI.ā€™ 

Last week, Google announced a straight-up cornucopia of AI-related announcements in their product lineup. 

Sandwiched between the OpenAI Spring Event and the Microsoft Build conference the week after, Googleā€™s I/O conference might not have gotten the attention it deserved here at Everyday AI. 

And, yā€™all said you wanted Google I/O content. 

(We give the people what they want!) 

Some was great. 

Some was bad. 

Some was kinda WTF?!

If you missed Googleā€™s I/O event, hereā€™s the tl;dr version of the more highly visible product announcements: 

  • Google unveiled Project Astra, an impressive new AI agent powered by Gemini.

  • Google announced enhancements to Gemini models, including Gemini 1.5 Pro with longer token context windows.

  • "Ask Photos" powered by Gemini was revealed for Google Photos, providing enhanced photo memory summaries.

  • Google announced the rollout of Gemini Nano with multimodality on Pixel phones.

  • Android 15 was presented with AI-powered search, Gemini as the new AI assistant, and on-device AI for new experiences.

  • Google showcased Gems, customized versions of Gemini AI for specific tasks.

  • Google demonstrated Google AI Teammate, a virtual teammate for work tasks.

  • Updates to Google Workspace were highlighted, integrating Gemini to enhance efficiency at work.

  • New features for Google Search were introduced, leveraging generative AI for organized search results.

  • Google revealed Veo, a text-to-video generator, and Imagen 3, an AI image generator.

  • Lryia, Google's AI music generator, was demonstrated with musician Wyclef Jean.

Now, letā€™s break it down and give you our takes on what hit and what missed. 

1 ā€“ The Good šŸ‘ļø

Yeah, weā€™re tough on Google sometimes.

But there was a lot to like at their I/O conference.

Hereā€™s what weā€™re lovin after taking a week to soak it all in.

  • Project Astra

Similar to the Live Omni view (as we call it) that OpenAI debuted, Project Astra looks like mind-boggling tech.

Think if you could Facetime the smartest person in the world in any niche, at any moment, and they always had the right answer.

Instantly.

  • Veo

Like we said on todayā€™s show, somehow this Gem (pun included) fly under the radar.

Googleā€™s AI video generator looks dang impressive.

Sure, itā€™s not quite the quality of OpenAIā€™s SORA, but it looks leaps and bounds better than Runway and Pika Labs, the leading text-to-video tools that are publicly available right now.

  • Gems

Essentially a clone of ChatGPTā€™s custom GPTs?

Yes.

Still a huge win for Google?

Absofrigginlutely.

Like GPTs, you can give Gems custom instructions and connect to a custom knowledge base via Googleā€™s integrations.

2 ā€“ The Bad šŸ™…

Was there a lot not to like from Google?

Fosho.

And while we could get picky and go through on a product-by-product basis, weā€™re not gonna do that.

Hereā€™s a high level of what we werenā€™t vibing with.

  • Accessing new announced products

All those shiny new Google Gemini updates?

Be prepare for a lot of extra clicking and digging.

Thereā€™s dorks among us who this wonā€™t impact, butā€¦ this is Everyday AI. You know, for everyday people.

As an example, Google released an update to their Gemini 1.5 model, called Flash.

Gemini 1.5 Flash, is a lightweight and efficient AI model from Google designed for high-volume, high-frequency tasks, optimized for speed and featuring a large context window for multimodal reasoning across text, audio, and video.

Sounds dope, right?

But, you canā€™t access it via their front-end Gemini platform.

Instead, youā€™ve gotta sign up for a Google Cloud account, have a valid credit car on file, sign up/sign in to Google AI studio, create a new API key, and thenā€¦. youā€™re in.

Whew.

Yeah, thatā€™s kinda the rabbit hole youā€™ve gotta dive into to experience the tastiness of some of Googleā€™s newest updates, including that juicy 1 million token context window.

  • Vague release dates

All of those mentions of AI and hardly any hard commitments to WHEN weā€™d see all that AI.

  • When will we see Gemini 1.5 Pro with a 2 million context window in Gemini? No clue.

  • When might the ā€˜Ask Photosā€™ feature be released? Not a peep.

  • Project Astraā€¦ is that around the corner? Next quarter? 2025? #Shrugemoji

3 ā€“ The WTF šŸ¤¬

Some things left us kinda scratching our heads. Likeā€¦ wait. What?

  • AI for the sake of AI

Is Google just marketing a bunch of AI that might never get released?

Maybe.

Or who knows ā€” maybe Google will start to deliver banger after banger. While Microsoft and OpenAI left us with some seemingly hard dates and realistic expectations, we left the Google I/O presentation just feeling like we got marketing to.

Bombarded with buzzwords, over-produced demos, and robotic presentations. Too perfect. No blunders. Seemingly little humanity.

Google looks like theyā€™re just throwing AI into everything and hoping it pans out.

A former Google employee even spilled that much in a LinkedIn post.

  • Naming and discoverability

Is Google just marketing a bunch of AI that might never get released?

Maybe.

Or might they just keep changing product names and never fully released the things they previewed?

Could be.

Google Bard becomes Gemini.

And is the paid version called Gemini Pro or Gemini Ultra or Gemini Advanced or Gemini Enterprise? Or is it Gemini Flash? 1.5 Flash? Or is it Gemini 1.5 Pro Latest.

(Yes ā€” they actually have a selectable model with a ā€˜latestā€™ in there like when you named your papers in college.)

Also, donā€™t get us started on Google My Business becoming Google Business Profile or Google Data Studio becoming Looker Studio or Google hangouts becoming Google Chats or Google Apps becoming G Suite only to become Google Workspace. oy vey.

Needless to say, Googleā€™s AI name-dropping and name-changing tendencies might not turn out well.

And you wanna find some of these new Google features, like Google Gems? Just donā€™t Google them.

šŸ¤¦ā€ā™‚ļø

āŒš

Numbers to watch

ā‚¬5.2 Billion

Microsoft and Amazon recently invested a combined 5.2 billion euros (about $5.7 billion) in cloud and AI infrastructure and jobs in France.

Now This ā€¦

Let us know your thoughts!

Vote to see live results

Was today's episode and newsletter helpful?

For any answer, tell us why in the comments.

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

Reply

or to participate.