Google is stepping up its efforts towards generative AI and is introducing features on Tuesday that let users create text within Gmail and Docs by using Google’s AI technology.
The company is currently testing AI products and will make them available to a small amount people who use Workspace which also comprises Gmail as well as Google’s tools for productivity.
“Whether you’re a busy HR professional who needs to create customized job descriptions, or a parent drafting the invitation for your child’s pirate-themed birthday party, Workspace saves you the time and effort of writing that first version,” Johanna Voolich Wright, vice president of product management for Google Workspace, wrote in an article on the blog. “Simply type a topic you’d like to write about, and a draft will instantly be generated for you.”
Generative AI is the most talked about technology this year following the San Francisco startup OpenAI introduced the ChatGPT chatbot in November. The company saw it become viral. ChatGPT allows users to ask questions or make an inquiry and then respond with answers that are astonishingly intelligent and innovative. Top tech companies are now racing to incorporate similar features to their software.
In Google’s test, users can access the text box of an email, and then type “draft an email to the team.” The program will generate three paragraphs of a thank-you note, which users can modify, expand upon or transform into an organized list. Users can also ask to run the program another time.
Google boasts over 3 billion users on Workspace. This includes companies and consumers who subscribe to subscriptions.
Google’s biggest competitor in this market is Microsoft 365, the productivity bundle that, up until Oct. 2022 was referred to as Office 365. Microsoft a major investor in OpenAI is set to discuss AI as well as productivity tools in an online forum hosted by LinkedIn on Thursday.
A Google spokesperson confirmed to CNBC that Google was providing early access to new features to customers and certain education and business users. Google did not specify when it would release the capabilities in general release and also didn’t say whether the additional features will be included in existing plans or cost additional.
Google has announced that later in the year it is planning to roll out more AI features for Workspace such as Formula generation for Sheets automatic generated images for Slides and note-taking within Meet.
The company has recently introduced the “code red” alert for employees to react to ChatGPT. In the last month, Google said it will include AI functions to the top web-based search engine. Also on the Tuesday of this week, Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian stated that the company has begun testing a program to build chatbots for corporate use. Cloud business comprises Workspace.
“We’re so excited by the potential of generative AI, and the opportunities it will unlock,” Kurian wrote in his. Kurian claimed that the technology will enable people to communicate, empower developers to create new applications, and transform “how companies interact with their …. constituents.”
