Google packs more artificial intelligence into new Pixel phones, raises prices for devices by US$100
CTV
Google on Wednesday unveiled a next-generation Pixel smartphones lineup that will be infused with more with more artificial intelligence tools capable of writing captions about photos that can be altered by the technology, too.
Google on Wednesday unveiled a next-generation Pixel smartphones lineup that will be infused with more with more artificial intelligence tools capable of writing captions about photos that can be altered by the technology, too.
The injection of more artificial intelligence, or AI, into Google's products marks another step in the company's attempt to bring more of the technology into the mainstream -- a push they signaled they were embarking upon during their annual developer's conference five months ago.
"Our focus is on making AI more helpful for everyone in a way that is bold and responsible," Rick Osterloh, Google's senior vice president of devices and services, said during Wednesday's event held in New York. As if to leave no doubt about Google's current priorities, Osterloh described the new Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro phones as a conduit for having "AI in your hand."
The company's next moves will include allowing its 7-year-old Google Assistant to tap into the company's recently hatched AI chatbot, Bard, to perform tasks. The expanded access to Bard comes just two weeks after Google began connecting the AI chatbot to the company's other popular service such as Gmail, Maps and YouTube.
Google is leaving it up to each user to decide whether to allow Bard to interact with its other services in an effort to address worries about AI sifting through potentially sensitive information in its effort to learn more about language and people.
One of the new tricks that the Bard-backed assistant is supposed to be able to do is scan a photo taken on a phone powered by Google's Android software and generate a pithy caption suitable for posting on social media. As Google has been doing with most of its AI gambits, the Bard-backed Google Assistant initially will only be available to a test audience before it is gradually offered on an opt-in basis to more owners of the latest Pixels.
As has become common across the industry, most of the other technology in the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro phones unveiled during an event in New York will be similar to what has already been available in last year's models.
