ChatGPT's Reign Faces Google Gemini’s Turbocharged Challenge

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AI is evolving rapidly. OpenAI has led the field, but competitors like Claude are nipping at its heels. The competition is intensifying, and now, it is most notably coming from Google.

OpenAI's o3 model has set new standards in reasoning, excelling in complex coding and advanced mathematics. ChatGPT's dominance is now challenged by Google's latest AI innovation, Gemini 2.0.

It improved threefold over the previous version of the ARC-AGI test, which measures problem-solving skills beyond those the AI was trained on. This sets a higher standard for AI and moves us closer to creating artificial general intelligence.

However, these advancements have increased computational demands, which in turn have increased operational costs.

For instance, the full-reasoning version of O3 (currently limited in preview) requires significantly more computing power, resulting in higher user expenses.

To cover these costs ChatGPT offers ChatGPT Pro for $200 per month to get unlimited access to their powerful reasoning model o1, but at $20 monthly, Google Gemini Advanced is a steal.

Also, for someone like me who uses Google Workplace as my primary productivity suite, Google’s advantage is the tighter integration with my productivity suite.

Beyond all this, Google has some pretty interesting and unique products. So, read on to find out some of my favorite Google AI tips and tricks.

ChatGPT's Reign Faces Google Gemini’s Turbocharged Challenge

OpenAI led the way—now Gemini is poised to redefine your AI-powered workflows

Google Gemini, initially launched as Google Bard in March 2023 and later rebranded, is Google's answer to ChatGPT. It is a multimodal AI model that can process and generate text, images, audio, and video. Beyond these capabilities, Gemini is deeply integrated with the Google ecosystem, allowing it to seamlessly interact with various Google services such as Search, Gmail, Docs, and YouTube.

Some of the key features of Google Gemini include:  

• Multimodality: Gemini's ability to work with different data types makes it a versatile tool for various applications, including image captioning, video analysis, and audio transcription.  

• Advanced Information Retrieval: Gemini can access and process information from the real-time web, providing up-to-date answers to topical questions.  

• Technical Prowess: Gemini excels at various coding tasks, including translating code between languages, generating different coding solutions, and completing or fixing incomplete code.  

• Deep Research: Gemini can analyze up to 1,500 pages of text, making it a powerful tool for research and information gathering.  

• Collating Large Amounts of Data: Gemini Advanced is my new go-to research assistant. It cannot only do "Deep Research," but it can also generate multi-page reports in minutes by analyzing hundreds of websites. This allows me to gather comprehensive information on various topics quickly. 

While Google Gemini has yet to reach the same level of market penetration as ChatGPT, it has been steadily gaining traction. As of October 2024, Gemini had over 42 million active users. Its deep integration with Google services and multimodal capabilities position it as a strong contender in the AI chatbot arena.  

Using Google Gemini

I still use ChatGPT as my primary chatbot, but Google Gemini has replaced Anthropic Claude as my second-most-used chatbot because of one feature. Here are some of the reasons for this and what’s hot in the Google AI ecosystem.

Gemini Advanced with 1.5 Pro with Deep Research

Everyone is talking about agents, but the Google Advanced paid consumer service includes the Gemini 1.5 Pro model with deep research (as of this writing, it’s not available as part of Gemini in Google Workspaces). This service pairs the Gemini 1.5 Pro model with search to allow Gemini to create a research plan that you can edit and direct. Then, it will analyze hundreds of websites and make a report that could be the envy of a McKinsey analyst. 

Simplify Complex Information with NotebookLM

NotebookLM is an AI-powered tool developed by Google AI that's changing how we learn and work with information. Unlike traditional AI chatbots, NotebookLM is grounded in the information you provide, making it a more reliable and personalized research assistant.

It combines a familiar note-taking interface with the power of a large language model (LLM), allowing you to organize your thoughts and engage with your documents more deeply.

NotebookLM allows you to create an audio conversation about your files. This is probably one of the most talked-about features in the AI space. Many users use it to create audio conversations from their documents with one click.

• Upload your documents: NotebookLM supports various formats, including PDFs, Google Docs, web pages, and YouTube videos.  

• Ask questions: Engage with the material by asking questions in a chat-like interface. Need a concise summary? Want to identify key findings? NotebookLM can provide answers with citations, allowing you to trace the information back to its source.  

• Organize your thoughts: Use the note-taking features to capture your ideas, insights, and questions as you interact with the material.  

• Broaden your research: NotebookLM can even help you make connections between different research areas to help you find relevant sources, expanding the scope of your research.  

• Granular control: While chatting with NotebookLM, you can quickly toggle individual sources on or off by checking a box on their previews. This allows you to guide the AI to focus on specific information and analyze details more efficiently.

Summarize YouTube Videos

I love watching YouTube videos that teach me something, but I can’t spend a lot of time watching them. Sometimes, I want to return to a video and highlight the key points. This is one place where Gemini shines. It’s lightning-fast and gives you the highlights faster than any other tool I’ve used.

Here’s an example prompt for using Gemini to do this; it’s not complicated, but you can add more direction in your prompt as needed.

Summarize this YouTube video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k1ehaE0bdU&ab_channel=PowerfulJRE

Interact with Google Sheets

Gemini's upgraded Smart Fill feature in Google Sheets recognizes patterns and automates tedious text entry tasks. It quickly transfers straightforward data from one column or format to another. With Gemini Autofill, AI integration enhances the process by detecting more intricate relationships and proposing more precise, more effective recording methods. This is helpful, especially when filling natural language, and it has much better pattern matching. 

How to Use Smart Fill

1. Enter your data: Start by manually entering a few examples of the desired output in your sheet. This helps Gemini understand the pattern you're trying to create.  

2. Start typing: Type in the next column cell where you want the pattern to continue.

3. Look for suggestions: Smart Fill will analyze your data and suggest ways to complete the rest of the column. 

4. Accept suggestions: If the suggestion is correct, press Enter or Tab to accept it. Smart Fill will then automatically fill in the rest of the column.

Author Emails in Gmail

I used to be hesitant to use AI to write emails. It felt impersonal, and I worried it wouldn't capture my voice. But Gemini in Gmail has completely changed my mind. It's not just some generic AI; it's learned from my writing style.

This means the drafts it creates are already tailored to my communication style, saving me time and effort while still sounding authentically me. It's like having a personal assistant who knows exactly how I like to write.

1. "Help me write"

• Start a new email or reply: Open a new compose window or reply to an existing email.  

• Click "Help me write": You'll find this button in the bottom left corner of the compose window.  

• Give Gemini a prompt: Tell Gemini what you want the email to be about. For example:

  • "Write a thank you email for a job interview."  

  • "Draft an email asking for an extension on a deadline."

  • "Compose an email introducing my company's new product.

• Click "Create": Gemini will generate a draft based on your prompt.  

• Review and edit: You can review the draft, make any necessary changes, and send it off!  

2. Refining an existing draft 

• Start writing your email: Begin composing your email as you usually would.

• Click "Help me write." Again, you'll find this button in the bottom left corner. 

• Choose a refinement option: Gemini offers several options to help you improve your draft:

  • Formalize: This makes your email sound more professional.  

  • Elaborate: Add more details and information.  

  • Shorten: Gets to the point more concisely.  

  • Polish: Refines the overall writing quality.  

   

• Review and edit: Check the changes Gemini made and make any further edits you want.  

Google’s Artificial Intelligence Advantage

Not only does Google have a lot of powerful and valuable AI research. But their tight integration with the productivity suite and your data stored in Google Drive is a huge competitive advantage of OpenAI. Only time will tell if they can catch Open.

BONUS: If you are into creating images or videos Google's AI image and video tools are blowing people's minds! Veo2, their latest and greatest video model, makes crazy good 1080p videos that look like they came straight out of Hollywood. And with VideoFX, you get a fantastic suite of AI tools to edit and create even more amazing videos. Then there's Imagen 3, which pumps out photorealistic images that are so real, it's scary.

I appreciate your support.