In 2023, what Google saw is somewhat reminiscent of what happened in 2007 with the launch of the first iPhone. At the time, Google was also working on a smartphone, but the firm’s management had opted for a much less ambitious project than Apple: a phone with keys, all with an unconvincing first version of the Android system.
The first iPhone, much more ambitious and revolutionary than expected, has forced Google to review its approach to mobiles in extremis. Finally Google chose to place itself on the software side, by putting the package on Android, the operating system launched in 2007 and fruit of the acquisition of a company (Android Inc.) founded by Andy Rubin, Rich Miner, Nick Sears and Chris White in 2003 – with the success that we know him.
ChatGPT triggered code red at Google
By its unique, ultra-useful and revolutionary side, ChatGPT gives Google the same effect as the presentation of the first iPhone. The firm must react, or else OpenIA will end up stealing its core business: ChatGPT already allows you to obtain fairly reliable answers, directly usable, all faster than if you had to browse many sites via Google to arrive to the same result.
ChatGPT thus shows for the first time what a real compelling alternative for web searches could look like. However, Google, very active around AI, has never really developed a tool similar to ChatGPT which would allow the firm to respond directly with its technology today. According to sources familiar with the matter, in 2023, Google will however unveil around twenty AI projects.
Some of these innovations should be unveiled on the sidelines of Google I/O 2023. Some of these projects will be aimed at developers while others will be more oriented towards the general public. One of these tools, called Colab Plus Android Studio, allows for example to code Android applications faster. Another tool allows you to create wallpapers for Google Pixel smartphones from scratch.
Finally, according to Android Authority, there will also be talk of an AI that summarizes videos by generating a new one from scratch. But also launching some sort of AI-powered chatbot this year that should appear on the search engine. Internally, Google would have activated the “red code”, aware of the heavy threat posed by ChatGPT for its fundamentals.
The boss of the firm Sundar Pichai is now betting everything on his AI projects and has modified many process to accelerate the development of its dedicated teams – while limiting the risks, with a new initiative, called “Green Line” which helps its employees to “ensure their technology is fair and ethical”. We can’t wait to find out what Google has in its boxes.
