Google has updated its Bard AI language model to provide better summaries and more useful source information. The new update makes it easier to understand the gist of a topic quickly and to find the information you need.
One of the biggest changes is that Google Bard now includes numbers alongside its responses to show which parts are taken from the source links at the bottom. This makes it much easier to see where Bard's information is coming from and to verify its accuracy. It is worth noting that Microsoft's Bing Chat already provides this level of source attribution, with reference numbers at the end of sourced links. However, Bard is not a direct competitor with Microsoft's search AI in the strictest sense.
Google's AI is an interface to its large language model (LLM) and not a search AI chatbot. Users can use the responses from Bard and check them for accuracy on Google Search (via a “Google It” button). Of course, source attribution both in-line at the end of the response makes the integration between Bard and Search more seamless. Unlike Bing Chat, Bard attributes sources in-line but by placing a number on the side of the response. Bing uses a more classic reference attribution style:
Bard has also been improved to provide better summaries of topics. In the past, Bard's summaries could be long and rambling, making it difficult to get the gist of a topic quickly. The new update addresses this issue by providing shorter, more concise summaries that are easier to read and understand. Users should not see summaries that are closer to ChatGPT in terms of usefulness and readability.
Making Bard Better as the Chatbot Reaches More Users
Overall, the new update to Google Bard is a significant improvement over the previous version. The new features make it easier to use Bard to get the information you need quickly and accurately.
Here is the latest update changelog that improves the AI to make it a better user experience:
- Better summaries: Bard now provides shorter, more concise summaries of topics. This makes it easier to get the gist of a topic quickly and to find the information you need.
- More useful source information: Bard now includes numbers alongside its responses to show which parts are taken from the source links at the bottom. This makes it much easier to see where Bard's information is coming from and to verify its accuracy.
- Improved accuracy: Bard has been improved to provide more accurate information. This is due to a number of factors, including the use of a larger dataset and the development of new algorithms.
Bard is a new AI experiment from Google that can have natural and creative conversations with users. It is now in limited preview for users in the U.S. and the U.K., and has also been rolled out globally to more users.
But the EU won't get to try Bard anytime soon. As I wrote last week, Bard is not available in the EU because of possible GDPR issues. The GDPR is a law that safeguards the privacy and personal data of EU citizens. It requires companies to get consent from users before collecting and using their data, and to give them the right to access, edit, erase, or move their data.
Google Bard, and other chatbots based on large language models like ChatGPT and Bing Chat, use huge amounts of data to produce responses. Some of this data may have personal or sensitive information that could breach the GDPR if not managed properly. For instance, Bard may accidentally expose or keep the identity, location, preferences, or opinions of its users.