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Google refines Bard’s generative AI once again, introducing an update that extends its integration to YouTube. According to the tech giant’s official announcement, the AI chatbot can now analyze videos on YouTube and instantly extract specific information to share with users. This means that it will no longer be necessary to spend time watching a video in its entirety to obtain key points or specific information; with a simple click, you can ask Bard to provide a list of what the video contains.
According to what was reported by The Verge, which had the opportunity to test the new functionality, when the chatbot is asked to summarize the video recipe of a cocktail, Bard is able to list the exact ingredients with the correct instructions, but with a small deviation: the recommendation to shake the drink for 30 seconds, which was not found in the original video. However, the results of Bard’s work can be considered positive for the American magazine.
At the moment, this feature only exists as a Labs experience and requires, according to The Verge, a bit of work to get the answer you’re looking for. By asking for the “full recipe” from the video, Bard failed to generate anything, but by asking for “step by step instructions” in a subsequent prompt then the machine went live.
Google’s recent innovation comes just weeks after YouTube integrated generative AI, first as additional features for creators, then by introducing a conversational tool that can answer user questions about video content, a integrated system called “Ask” where you can ask for more information on a topic shown in a video or on specific details, generate summaries of the clips as well as discussions in the comments. Similarly, the tech giant has now leveraged Bard’s capabilities to allow users to access useful information in a video without having to watch it completely. While on the one hand this utility favors the user experience, allowing the user to avoid viewing videos and advertisements on the platform, on the other hand it endangers the work of creators. If AI can effectively summarize information from a video, it begs the question of what the future of work will be for YouTubers, or at least some of them.