Google is embracing the newest trend in the tech sector: chatbots that require subscriptions.
The largest search engine will start charging $19.99 per month for Gemini Advanced, its most potent chatbot, as part of a subscription package that also includes access to additional file storage and other benefits.
The most recent version of Google’s chatbot, called Gemini Advanced, was launched a few months after the corporation was taken by surprise by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which was expected to be a leader in artificial intelligence research. The biggest supporter of OpenAI, Microsoft, unveiled a subscription chatbot last month aimed at individual customers of its business applications.
Google is attempting to directly benefit from the growing consumer demand in AI services that can produce original text and photos with the launch of the new Gemini Advanced offering. There will always be a free version of the chatbot that makes use of less advanced AI technology.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in a statement on Thursday that Gemini Advanced will be a “new experience far more capable at reasoning, following instructions, coding, and creative collaboration.” It could be a private tutor designed specifically for your learning style, for instance. It could also serve as a creative collaborator, supporting you in developing a commercial strategy or content strategy.”
Although advertising still accounts for the great majority of Alphabet’s revenue, the parent company of Google has made an effort to expand into other markets, including cloud storage and online cable bundles, as growth in its primary sector has slowed.
According to Pichai, the company’s yearly subscription revenue hit $15 billion last month, a five-fold rise in the same period of time. The majority of Google’s $307 billion in revenue from next-to-search advertisements came from this source last year.
Tech behemoths are still trying to figure out how to convert the latest developments in AI into consistent revenue. The technology that powers chatbots, generative AI, is particularly expensive to create and distribute to a wide user base.
Google’s chatbot will cost the same as comparable products from OpenAI and Microsoft. For their more potent chatbot applications, several smaller businesses like Character and Perplexity also charge a monthly fee.
In December, Grok, a chatbot touted as being more sardonic and unrestrained than rival services, was made available to subscribers of Elon Musk’s X premium subscription, which costs $16 per month.
As part of the announcement on Thursday, Google rebranded its chatbot and a number of AI-powered business software features as Gemini, reflecting the branding it unveiled in December for its most cutting-edge AI technology.
According to Similarweb data, Google’s chatbot, Bard, only attracted roughly one-fifth of the 1.6 billion visitors to the OpenAI product in January, falling short of ChatGPT’s popularity. How many users pay for the subscription version is unknown according to OpenAI.
According to Google, the Gemini chatbot will be accessible via the Google app on iPhones and as a stand-alone app for phones running the popular Android mobile OS.
