Google rebrands Bard chatbot as Gemini in race with OpenAI, Microsoft
- A free version of the chatbot will continue to be available, but users who pay US$19.99 a month can access the more advanced Ultra 1.0
- The Google One AI Premium subscription enables the use of Gemini in Gmail and Google Docs, without toggling back and forth with OpenAI’s ChatGPT
Alphabet’s Google rebranded its chatbot and rolled out a new subscription plan that will give people access to its most powerful artificial intelligence (AI) model, placing it squarely in competition with rival OpenAI.
Google’s chatbot, which had been known as Bard and was its answer to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, will now be called Gemini. A version will continue to be available for free, but people willing to pay US$19.99 for a monthly subscription will gain access to Google’s most advanced tool in its Gemini family of AI models, the Ultra 1.0.
The Ultra model, which becomes available to the broader public on Thursday, performs better with more complex tasks such as coding and logical reasoning, the company said.
The move highlights Google’s attempts to find a business model for its investments in AI, which have opened new strategic opportunities in the market but also require tremendous computing power and other resources.
Alphabet chief financial officer Ruth Porat said during the company’s earnings call last week that Alphabet’s capital spending this year will be “noticeably larger” than in 2023.
Rebranding Bard also creates a more cohesive structure for Google’s AI tools, naming many of the products after the engine that powers them.