It's (Google) Gemini Season
Everything you need to know about Google's GenAI Tool
Confession: I canceled my ChatGPT Plus subscription, but not because I’m quitting GenAI. I did it to take advantage of the two-month free trial of Gemini Advanced that Google is offering right now.
With it being Gemini season, now is the perfect time to dive into Google’s not-at-all-new, but somewhat improved, GenAI tool that it developed to compete with ChatGPT and OpenAI.
I spent quite a bit of time exploring all things Gemini (formerly Bard) this week, which included venturing back into the land of Dude YouTube and watching tutorials so you don’t have to.
Here’s everything you need to know about Gemini:
Is Gemini vs. ChatGPT the new Pepsi vs. Coke?
The first thing everyone should know about Gemini is that it’s very, very similar to ChatGPT. Gemini’s interface looks nearly identical to ChatGPT, both GenAI chatbots offer a free version (that works just fine) and a paid version (that works a lot better), and the same rules of learning how to write good prompts to get the result you want still apply.
Because Gemini and ChatGPT are so alike, it’s more helpful to focus on the ways that Gemini is different from its rival:
1. Gemini is integrated into all of Google’s other products. This includes:
Gmail: Gemini can help you compose emails, summarize threads, and generate responses.
Google Docs: Gemini can help you brainstorm, write, and edit documents.
Google Sheets: Gemini can help you analyze data, create formulas, and generate charts.
Google Slides: Gemini can help you create presentations with images and text.
Google Meet: Gemini can help you take notes during meetings and generate summaries.
Additionally, Gemini is integrated with Google apps like YouTube, Maps, Flights, and Hotels, allowing you to access real-time information in over 40 languages (I asked Gemini to write this part, because why not?).
*One tutorial I watched recommended that you turn off some of these extensions (located under the extensions tab) when using Gemini so that the chatbot performs better. Having all these Google apps running simultaneously could slow down the response time.
2. Google is really pushing the “search” and “summarize” aspect of its GenAI tool
Google claims that you can use Gemini to search through your emails and Google Drive with just a few keywords. I asked Gemini to “locate all my utility bills from the past year”, and while it did pull up some relevant emails from my Gmail, the result wasn’t any better than the regular Gmail search function. I also tried using Gemini to find files in Google Drive and got a similar result.
I concluded that my inbox and Google Drive folders just aren’t organized enough to be improved by this AI integration. Sorry, I’m the type of person with 15 documents labeled “Untitled Document” at any given time, so it will take a lot more than a Gemini prompt to help me get organized.
I was surprised so many demos were really pushing Gemini’s “summarize” function. This just means that you can put any copy or document into Gemini and the tool will summarize it into some ‘quick highlights’ or ‘three main takeaways’.
Summarizing is something even the most poorly built GenAI tool can do, so I don’t know why Google seems to be so jazzed about it. Is the AI version of CliffsNotes really that revolutionary? I wondered. Also when you think about it, CliffsNotes was the original tl:dr.
The one thing I want Gemini to do for me as a ‘personal AI assistant’ is delete my emails. When I asked it to do this, Gemini replied “I can’t delete your emails, because I am AI.”
3. Gemini has a ‘twin’ double meaning.
Gemini refers to both the GenAI chatbot and Google’s other, more sophisticated (and therefore probably more expensive) LLM. Technically, Google has multiple LLMs that utilize different volumes of data. But when people are talking about Gemini, they’re usually referring to the GenAI tool that we, the general population, have access to.
Will Gemini really write all your emails for you?
Gmail has had a smart compose feature for a few years, but the new “Help me write” option that uses Gemini is far more advanced. You can either use the tool in Gmail, or write an email using Gemini and export it as a draft to your inbox.
Gemini also gives you the option to refine or modify your response, like make it sound more ‘casual’ or ‘professional’. Similarly in Google Docs, a document created with Gemini will give you the option to modify your tone, shorten, lengthen, bulletize, summarize, etc.
Does anything you write in Google Docs using Gemini automatically get read by Google?
This was my main concern: how do I know that copy I’m writing in a Google Doc doesn’t become data used by Google to train its AI?
According to Google, “Gemini doesn't use your prompts or its responses as data to train its models.”
Google Drive isn’t exactly private. While the tech giant says that it doesn't technically read files, it does use an automated system to scan for indicators of abuse. However, in 2019, one former ex-Google employee claimed that documents within the Google Suite domains are not end-to-end encrypted, which means Google can also read users data.
Some companies don’t allow employees to use Gmail or G Suite applications for this very reason. While Google does scan what you put into Google Drive, I don’t think it’s using your Google documents to train Gemini. Basically, don’t input private, sensitive or proprietary information into Gemini or any other GenAI tool.
Who will benefit most from using Gemini?
Gemini could be very useful if you spend a lot of time emailing with Gmail for work or business purposes. Same goes for those who do a lot of work using Google Docs or Google Sheets.
Some users also prefer Gemini’s tone of voice and think it performs better than ChatGPT in various aspects. There’s no harm in signing up for the two-month free trial of Gemini Advanced and trying it out.
Should you make the switch from ChatGPT to Gemini?
Many articles (including my own) on GenAI tools attempt to answer the question: which one is best?
The more I researched Gemini, the more I realized that we shouldn’t go all-in on one GenAI application and use it for everything. We’ve been forced to exist in Google’s internet for a very, very long time. OpenAI is the first real threat to Google’s business model in well over a decade.
When ChatGPT first launched, I think what was exciting—or at least intriguing—about the chatbot was the ways it wasn’t like Google search. ChatGPT also showed how Google’s over-reliance on SEO and paid search resulted in a data set rife with misinformation and results that were not at all what users were searching for.
“Google is an advertising company, it's a data collection company,” says Lauren Goode in a recent episode of Wired’s Gadget Lab podcast. “[With Gemini, there is] this juxtaposition of, "Look at all of these incredible whizzbang AI tools that are going to make your searches faster, your email writing more efficient. You're going to be able to generate entirely new content from just entering a few prompts, and this is how it's going to make your life better. But Google is still, at the end of the day, a search advertising company that is concerned about its bottom line.”
Why you should give Gemini a try—but don’t abandon ChatGPT altogether
The fact that we now have several GenAI tools built with different LLMs is a good thing. Competition in the AI space means that maybe, just maybe, tech companies will be forced to design products for their own users, not advertisers.
I know we’re all used to free email, free applications, free social media platforms, free music streaming services, etc., but paying for a GenAI tool like ChatGPT Plus means that there’s an incentive for OpenAI to design with the user in mind, rather than relying on advertising for most of its revenue.
In the meantime, go get your free trial of Gemini Advanced and see if you like it. Just don’t ask it to delete any of your emails or documents, because Google didn’t train its AI to do that.
Happy Gemini season :)
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