Google rival to ChatGPT begins rollout across UK

21 March 2023, 18:14 | Updated: 25 July 2023, 11:47

Google Play app store
Google Play app store. Picture: PA

Bard will become available to a small number of UK and US users from Tuesday

Google has begun rolling out its rival to ChatGPT.

The tech giant said it is giving some over 18s in the UK and US access to its Bard chatbot from Tuesday.

The company hopes the artificial intelligence tool will be available in more countries and different languages over time.

Unlike its rival, which was developed by OpenAI, the brand new bot has access to the internet and has a “Google It” button which accesses search.

It also quotes its sources and directs users to a relevant webpage if it has made extensive use of it when answering a question.

Google said it hopes its invention will allow people to be more productive, creative and curious.

The California-based company said the device can help people with tasks such as planning a party by coming up with a to-do list and invitations – freeing up the user’s time and brain power for “more high-level tasks”.

It can also help people come up with new ideas and explain concepts a user may not be familiar with.

It was pre-trained on data from publicly available sources, which allows it to pick up patterns in language and use them to predict the likely next word in a sequence.

Users prompt it, for example by asking a question, and it drafts responses which are then checked against safety metrics.

However, Google warned Bard may share misinformation and could display biases.

The tech firm said the device is “not yet fully capable of distinguishing between what is accurate and inaccurate information” because it predicts answers based on others it has learned from.

Biases can be caused by “gaps, biases and stereotypes in training data” and Google said that, because it is supposed to give users multiple perspectives on political and social issues, it can sometimes incorporate controversial views into its responses.

The AI tool may sometimes suggest it has emotions and feelings because of the language it has been exposed to.

It has filters to prevent it coming up with offensive responses or comments – but these can occasionally fail, the tech company warned.

Google said responsibility and safety underpin all its work, and the chatbot is designed to have a social benefit.

Rival chatbot ChatGPT had more than a million users within a week of its launch in November 2022, according to OpenAI.

Microsoft has opened up an early lead in AI-powered technology and began deploying ChatGPT to its Bing search engine last month.

Last week, Microsoft embedded more AI-powered technology in its word processing, spreadsheet and slide presentation programmes with a new feature called Copilot.

By Press Association

More Technology News

See more More Technology News

Sir Elton John performing

Elton John says ‘we will not back down’ in awards speech addressing AI concerns

Live
Customers purchase Nintendo Switch 2 at an electronics retailer in Tokyo on June 5, 2025.

Nintendo Switch 2 launch live: Where to buy, best deals, and early verdict

In this photo illustration, an Apple logo is seen displayed alongside the Google logo.

Tech giants Apple and Google 'profiting from phone thefts', MPs claim

A man's hands using a laptop keyboard

Scots warned of ‘scamdemic’ as £860,000 lost to cyber criminals in 12 months

A close up image of a The North Face fleece

North Face and Cartier customer data stolen in cyber attacks

Imagery of a Zilch payments card and a virtual card

Buy now pay later provider Zilch to launch first physical card

UK’s most EV-friendly city has been revealed by new research.

Cities with slowest EV charging times and least amount of chargers revealed

View of a VodafoneThree logo outside the firm's offices

Vodafone completes Three UK mega-merger to form ‘new force’ in mobile market

A hand holding a Monzo bank card and a mobile phone showing the Monzo app

Monzo annual profit surges as paying subscribers boost digital bank

Majestic British Airways Airbus A380 taking off from London Heathrow at sunset, amazing colors

UK airspace shake-up could slash journey times and cut flight delays for millions of passengers

File photo dated 30/05/25 of the saltmarsh at Abbotts Hall in Essex. Saltmarshes are 'significant' carbon stores, but are at risk from rising sea levels, new research reveals

UK's muddy saltmarshes vital to tackle climate change, report finds

Nigel Farage

Reform backs cryptocurrency tax cut as party receives first Bitcoin donations

Digital devices on office workplace table of young business woman

‘Young people and black workers at highest risk of workplace surveillance’

Debris from the Titan submersible, recovered from the ocean floor near the wreck of the Titanic, is unloaded from the ship Horizon Arctic at the Canadian Coast Guard pier in St. John's, Newfoundland, in June 2023

The shock household item discovered in 'sludge' of OceanGate sub wreckage

Google is facing a £25 billion legal claim in the UK, accusing the tech giant of abusing its dominant position in the online search advertising market

Google facing £25 billion legal claim over abuse of search advertising market

A hand holding a phone showing the Nvidia logo

Nvidia posts strong growth despite ongoing tariff challenges