Google Bard, the AI chat assistant developed by Google, has finally caught up with its competitors, Microsoft’s Bing and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, by introducing a long-awaited feature: image generation. In a recent blog post, Google announced an update to Bard that enables users to create AI-generated images for the first time, along with other improvements.
The most significant update to Bard is its ability to generate images based on a text prompt. Although currently available only in English, this feature aims to balance quality and speed, providing high-quality, photorealistic outputs. Users can simply type a description, such as create an image of a dog riding a surfboard, and Bard will generate custom visuals that bring their ideas to life.
To enhance creativity, Bard now allows image generation in English in most countries around the world, without any cost. This new capability is made possible by the updated Imagen 2 model, which strikes a balance between quality and speed. The model has been trained on higher-quality image-description pairs, resulting in more detailed and realistic images. It excels in processing details, capturing nuance, and producing photorealistic images across various styles and use cases.
I personally tested the image generation feature with a simple prompt, asking Bard to create an image of a hiker on a mountain. To my surprise, it produced two images—one more realistic and the other more artistic. Both images featured a hiker with trekking poles, although I hadn’t specifically asked for them. Nevertheless, this new feature appears to be widely available, allowing users to unleash their creativity.
Apart from image generation, the latest update also brings Gemini Pro to Bard in over 40 additional languages. Google had previously introduced Gemini Pro to Bard in English, but now it is expanding the technology to cater to a much larger audience. Gemini Pro enhances Bard’s capabilities in understanding, summarizing, reasoning, coding, and planning.
The Large Model Systems Organization, renowned for evaluating language models and chatbots across languages, has recently praised Bard with Gemini Pro as one of the most preferred chatbots available, regardless of cost. Independent evaluations conducted by third-party raters have identified Bard with Gemini Pro as one of the top-performing conversational AIs when compared to both free and paid alternatives.
While Google Bard ventures into image creation, other companies are utilizing AI for different purposes. For instance, Yelp is utilizing AI to curate the images of food displayed at restaurants. Clearly, AI is becoming increasingly involved in shaping our visual experiences, whether by creating images itself or determining which images we see.
In conclusion, Google Bard’s latest update brings image generation to its AI chat assistant, allowing users to create custom visuals based on text prompts. With the powerful Imagen 2 model, Bard delivers high-quality, photorealistic images, aligning with the user’s intent. Moreover, the expansion of Gemini Pro to more languages enhances Bard’s abilities across various linguistic contexts. As AI continues to evolve, it will undoubtedly play a more significant role in shaping our visual landscapes.
