On Thursday, Google announced that it had renamed its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot and assistant, Bard, to “Gemini” to unify its generative AI branding for all its existing and future efforts.
Google Rebrands Its AI Chatbot Bard As “Gemini”
“Gemini is evolving to be more than just the models. It supports an entire ecosystem — from the products that billions of people use every day, to the APIs and platforms helping developers and businesses innovate,” wrote Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai in a blog post.
Pichai said they are rebranding Bard into Gemini to “reflect the advanced tech at its core.” It will be available in over 40 languages on the web and in more than 230 countries and territories and will continue to be powered by the Gemini Pro AI model.
For those unaware, in December 2023, the search giant unveiled Gemini, its next-generation multimodal generative AI model, to power services like Bard and Duet AI. It is the company’s ‘largest and most capable’ large language model (LLM) ever built to date. Since its launch, Google Bard has been powered by Gemini.
Gemini comes in three different sizes: Gemini Ultra, its largest and most capable model for highly complex tasks; Gemini Pro, its best model for scaling across a wide range of tasks; and Gemini Nano, its most efficient model for on-device tasks.
Building on the rebrand, Google is now bringing two new experiences — Gemini Advanced and a mobile app — to help users easily collaborate with the best of Google AI and compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Copilot.
To start with Gemini Advanced, it will give users access to Ultra 1.0, the company’s largest and most capable state-of-the-art AI model that is far more capable at highly complex tasks like coding, logical reasoning, following nuanced instructions, and collaborating on creative projects.
To use Gemini Advanced, Google users can subscribe to the new Google One AI Premium plan for $19.99 per month, starting with a two-month trial at no cost. This plan will get users access to Ultra 1.0, 2TB of storage, as well as all the latest Google advancements.
Currently, Gemini Advanced is available in more than 150 countries and territories in English and is expected to expand to more languages shortly. For more details on Gemini Advanced, click here.
Moving to the mobile experience, Google has rolled out a new app for Gemini and Gemini Advanced for Android users, which can be downloaded from the Google Play Store. Android users can also access Gemini through Google Assistant, which can be triggered by a long home button tap.
“With Gemini on your phone, you can type, talk or add an image for all kinds of help while you’re on the go: You can take a picture of your flat tire and ask for instructions, generate a custom image for your dinner party invitation or ask for help writing a difficult text message,” the company adds.
For iOS users, Google says it will be rolling out access to Gemini from the official Google app for iOS in the coming weeks.