Google Pixel to Introduce Chatty AI Chatbot Bard on Home Screen Widget
Google is reportedly in the process of bringing its conversational Artificial Intelligence-powered chatbot, Bard AI, to Pixel phones and tablets. Although late to the AI chatbot party, Bard AI is gradually maturing. Now, Google aims to expand its reach and make it more popular to take on the powerful Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT.
According to 9to5Google, Bard AI may soon be available to Pixel devices through a home screen widget. While inspecting Bard's code, the publication found a reference to the AI software's potential availability on Pixel devices, hinting at what could be the first-ever implementation of Google's AI software on a phone. However, it is unclear whether Bard AI will be accessible through a dedicated app on Android or integrated into the Google Search app. A home screen widget could just be a shortcut to the Bard AI website, so it is not entirely clear.
Bard AI is currently limited to Pixel fans and is not widely accessible, unlike ChatGPT or Bing AI — which are available to everyone. To try out Bard AI, anyone else must join a waitlist. However, implementing Bard AI as a home screen widget on Pixel phones may not solve the limited availability problem. Pixel phones are not the highest-selling phones in most markets, but that is what makes Google's job easy. Before making Bard AI available to everyone, Google is treading carefully to avoid any more embarrassment.
After Bard AI was opened to a select few users, some former and existing Google employees criticised the company's AI chatbot, referring to Bard AI as "worse than useless" and a "pathological liar." According to Bloomberg, some internal messages shared among Google employees associated with Bard AI painted a worrying picture of how dangerous the AI chatbot could potentially become. They suggested that Bard AI often offered wrong, misleading, and potentially life-threatening advice on a variety of topics.
Some users who had access to Bard AI also expressed their concerns about the kind of responses they received. Not only were these responses deemed wrong from a human perspective, but they also urged users to choose unethical routes. Experts and critics suggest that Google may have rushed the launch of an inadequate AI chatbot.
With the launch of Bard AI on Pixel phones, Google may try to test the AI chatbot further and record feedback to improve it until the company feels ready to counter ChatGPT.
