Google has launched its AI text robot Bard in Germany and the EU. “Bard is now available in most countries around the world, including all European Union states and Brazil,” said Google executive Jack Krawczyk, who oversees Bard at the internet giant. Bard’s biggest update to date also includes support for the most commonly spoken languages, including German, Arabic, Chinese, Hindi and Spanish. Until now, Bard could only be operated in English, Japanese and Korean.
With Bard, Google is countering the success of the text robot ChatGPT from the start-up OpenAI. The competition in this segment is particularly relevant for Google, also because OpenAI is supported by Microsoft with billions. The major Google competitor is trying to break into markets like internet search and online advertising with the help of ChatGPT. In addition, the AI functions are intended to secure Microsoft’s supremacy in the software market.
So far blocked in Europe
The Google service Bard with artificial intelligence was still blocked for users in Germany and the other 27 member states of the European Union when it started in mid-May. The Irish Data Protection Commission DPC, which is responsible for Google in Europe, had expressed concerns as to whether Bard was complying with the provisions of the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Krawczyk said they had spoken not only to the Irish data protection commissioner, but also to many data protection authorities in Europe, including the Hamburg Commissioner for Data Protection, who is responsible for Google in Germany.
At the same time as the regional expansion, Google is also introducing new functions at Bard, Krawczyk said. The system can also read the answers out loud: “This is particularly helpful if you want to hear the correct pronunciation of a word or have a poem or script read out to you.” This function is now available in German and in over 40 other languages.
At the same time, you can also customize Bard’s responses to your own needs and set the tonality and style to different options. For example, you could ask Bard to help write an ad for an old chair, and then use the drop-down list to shorten the answer if necessary. This function is initially only available in English and will soon be expanded to other languages.
Bard should remain free
Also new is the function of combining voice input with uploading images. This can be used to provide inspiration for a text related to the image, for example when thanking someone for a gift and want Bard to help you formulate the thanks. This feature is now in English and will be available in other languages soon.
Google manager Krawczyk said in an interview with the German Press Agency that all Bard functions would continue to be offered free of charge. “Right now our focus is on making Bard as useful as possible for users, so we’re not focused on monetization at the moment.” Google competitor OpenAI, on the other hand, offers a paid subscription option ChatGPT Plus for its service. For $20 a month, OpenAI offers better availability during high demand, faster response time, and priority access to new features like the latest language models.
