Google Bard is preparing a huge suite of new features going into 2024, with custom bots, tasks, shared queries, “Power Ups,” and a paid “Advanced” tier on the way.
In early December 2023, Google revealed its new Gemini model which is used today to power Bard. Gemini comes in their tiers, with “Nano” used on the Pixel 8 Pro for on-device AI, “Pro” used in Bard, and “Ultra” coming this year to power “Bard Advanced.” Now, further details are surfacing.
As spotted by Dylan Roussel and shared on Twitter/X, several changes to Google Bard are hiding beneath the surface of the Bard website.
Firstly, this includes that Google Bard “Advanced” will be a paid tier. This doesn’t come as a big surprise, but access to Advanced will be bundled into Google One, and customers may get a three-month free trial – none of this is likely final, so details could change.
Google briefly explains in a still-unpublished pop-up saying:
Try Bard Advanced for 3 months, on us
Get more capable large language model with advanced math and reasoning skills with Bard Advanced for 3 months on us.
A link on that pop-up redirects to an unpublished page on the Google One website that’s specifically referring to “Bard Advanced.” This wouldn’t be the first time Google One was used to grant access to features in other products, such as the recent release of Magic Eraser to non-Pixel devices.
Beyond that, many more new features are incoming. One of these new features is support for custom bots, currently hidden under the codename “Motoko.” Code directly confirms this refers to creating bots in Bard, but details are still unclear, such as if this will require Bard Advanced or not, as well as what bots can do.
Beyond that, there are some additional tidbits.
“Gallery” appears to be a new section in Bard that will effectively serve as inspiration to show users what Bard can do. “Tasks” have also been spotted in development, which from the code seems to be a place for ongoing tasks that need additional time to process – Dylan speculates this could be for tasks such as image generation. There’s also a new sharing option for what appears to be customizing shared Bard queries, with users able to set the background and foreground. Another feature is called “Power Up.” Details are again light on this, but the button will apparently help users improve their prompts in Bard.
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Laura Adams is a tech enthusiast residing in the UK. Her articles cover the latest technological innovations, from AI to consumer gadgets, providing readers with a glimpse into the future of technology.
