--- title: "Google Officially Announces ChatGPT Competitor Called “Bard”" description: "Google is officially working on a ChatGPT competitor dubbed \"Bard,\" according to a blog post published today by CEO Sundar Pichai." date: "2023-02-06" modified: "2023-02-06" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/google-announces-chatgpt-competitor-bard" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Google" tags: - "chatgpt" - "Google" - "OpenAI" - "the digest" --- # Google Officially Announces ChatGPT Competitor Called “Bard” ![Google is officially working on a ChatGPT competitor dubbed "Bard," according to a blog post published today by CEO Sundar Pichai.]() *\Image: Google\* ## Bard College Google is officially working on a ChatGPT competitor dubbed "Bard," according to a [blog post]() published today by CEO Sundar Pichai, in the latest sign of a growing AI gold rush in the tech industry. The tool will be powered by the company's Language Model for Dialogue Applications (LaMDA) — yes, the same one that one of its engineers [said had come to life]() last year, prompting the company to [fire him](). The news comes after Pichai reportedly [issued a "code red"]() late last year over the astonishing rise in popularity of OpenAI's blockbuster chatbot. "Bard can be an outlet for creativity, and a launchpad for curiosity, helping you to explain new discoveries from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to a nine-year-old, or learn more about the best strikers in football right now, and then get drills to build your skills," the blog post reads. ## Google Chat (GPT) Bard will be limited to being an "experimental conversational AI service," according to Pichai, that can do anything from planning a baby shower to comparing two Oscar-nominated movies, according to a screenshot. Whether it can carve out market share while delivering a quality product is anyone's guess, though. Google recently [laid off around 12,000 workers](), while also doubling down on its investments in AI. Over the weekend, [news broke]() that Google was to invest $300 million in AI firm Anthropic, which was founded by former OpenAI researchers. The company will be live-streaming a [40-minute event]() all about AI on Wednesday, so we will likely hear more about it then. **READ MORE:** [Google announces ChatGPT rival Bard, with wider availability in ‘coming weeks’]() \[*The Verge*\] ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()