Search
+
    The Economic Times daily newspaper is available online now.

    Is Bard chatbot as smart as ChatGPT? A look at Google's AI competitor

    Synopsis

    Google's chatbot called Bard is steadily improving after its launch in March 2023. Bard provides three different drafts for every question asked, with varying formats, and it is generally quite smart but accuracy rates are hit-and-miss, particularly with specific details and dates. The recent addition of Google Lens integration has made it more efficient and capable, with the support for Hindi.

    Exploring Bard AI chatbotiStock
    Exploring Google's Bard AI chatbot.
    When ChatGPT arrived at the fag end of 2022, no one could have perhaps predicted the mad rush it ushered in. ChatGPT’s artificial intelligence woke up Google from its human slumber and literally forced Sundar Pichai and co. to step on the gas. And step up they did with Bard — Google’s answer to ChatGPT. Bard hit people’s screens in March 2023 and it has been a slow, steady progress for Google’s chatbot. Pichai has emphasised on more than a few occasions that it is more important for Google to be right and not the first. Bard, however, is now a more refined experience courtesy of all the new features Google has introduced.

    How Smart Is Bard?

    It is quite smart and capable. ChatGPT smart? More or less. The one differentiating factor is that for every question you ask, Bard will give you three drafts. The three drafts often are more or less the same but are written in a different format. If you ask three people to answer the same question, you are likely to get three different answers. That’s the principle it follows.

    When it comes to accuracy, it is a bit of a hit-and-miss. Bard often gets confused with details and dates. For instance, if you ask about a particular phone’s specifications that you may be looking to buy, eight of 10 will be right but two will be incorrect. It is something that ChatGPT also suffers from. But the one edge Bard has gained is that it is more up-to-date. ChatGPT gives that advantage to its paid subscribers only. And yes, unlike ChatGPT Bard is completely free to use.

    The Google ‘Effect’

    Google started slow and steady and initially Bard was bare bones. But recent updates have made it more efficient and smarter. Take the case of Google Lens integration which is a really handy addition. All you need to do is upload an image in the prompt and Bard will tell you all about it. For instance, if you upload an image of a chihuahua and you want to know what breed it is, Bard will promptly tell you.

    Bard now also supports Hindi and its responses in Hindi are surprisingly good for basic questions. The moment you ask slightly descriptive or tricky questions, it kind of gives up. For example, we ended up asking for a review of the latest Mission Impossible movie in Hindi and got this response, “I am an LLM trained to respond in a subset of languages at this time, so I can't assist you with that.”

    The potential of Bard remains high but it hasn’t really become the part of mainstream narrative like ChatGPT has. Bard has some way to go and needs to do more than ChatGPT to become that.

    (Catch all the Business News, Breaking News, Budget 2024 Events and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.)

    Subscribe to The Economic Times Prime and read the ET ePaper online.

    ...more

    (Catch all the Business News, Breaking News, Budget 2024 Events and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.)

    Subscribe to The Economic Times Prime and read the ET ePaper online.

    ...more
    The Economic Times

    Stories you might be interested in