#Google #introducing #tools #Gmail #Docs #part #larger #push
Google is deepening its push into generative artificial intelligence, introducing features on Tuesday that will let users create text in Gmail and Docs using the company’s artificial intelligence technology.
The company is testing AI products and making them available to a limited number of Workspace users, which includes Gmail and Google’s productivity tools.
“Whether you’re a busy HR professional who needs to create custom job descriptions or a parent writing the invitation for your child’s pirate-themed birthday party, Workspace saves you time and effort. efforts to write this first version,” Johanna Voolich Wright, vice president of product for Google Workspace, wrote in a blog post. “Just type in a topic you want to write about, and a draft will be instantly generated for you.”
Generative AI was the hottest topic in tech this year after San Francisco startup OpenAI introduced the Chatbot ChatGPT in November and watched it quickly go viral. ChatGPT allows users to ask a question or make a request and responds with surprisingly sophisticated and creative responses. Top tech companies are now racing to build similar capabilities into their own products.
With Google’s test, a user can go to a text box in an email and type “compose an email to the team.” The app will spit out a three paragraph thank you note that the user can edit, expand, or turn into a bulleted list. The user can also ask the program to try again.
Google has over 3 billion Workspace users. This includes consumers and businesses, who pay for subscriptions.
Google’s main rival in the market is Microsoft 365, the productivity bundle that, until october 2022, was called Office 365. Microsoft, a major investor in OpenAI, will discuss AI and productivity software at an online event hosted on LinkedIn THURSDAY.
A Google spokesperson told CNBC that the company is offering early access to new features to consumers as well as select business and educational users. The company hasn’t said when it will release the features at scale, or whether the additional features will be included in existing packages or cost more.
Google said later this year it plans to bring additional AI features to Workspace, including formula generation in Sheets, auto-generated images in Slides and note-taking in Meet.
The company recently instituted a “red code” alert for employees to respond to ChatGPT. Last month, Google announced that it add AI features to its dominant Internet search engine. Separately on Tuesday, Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian said the company had started testing a service to build enterprise chatbots. The cloud business includes Workspace.
“We are so excited about the potential of generative AI and the opportunities it will unlock,” Kurian wrote. Kurian said the technology will help people express themselves, enable developers of new apps, and change “the way businesses…voters.”