Have you ever had the feeling that big tech is spying on you? Well, wait until you get a load of Google Bard’s new features that promise to make life easier than ever. Be careful what you say in that next email!
Google Has Your Back
In mid-September, Google took the next step in bringing the power of AI to consumers.
Expanding Its Horizons
No longer will Google Bard be limited to the data it already knows about or even the information it can pull from the web.
AI Gets Personal
No, Google vows to make your next Bard encounter more personal than you could have ever dreamed. Or feared.
They’re Raiding Your Inbox
Specifically, Google has rolled out integrations between Bard and many of its other popular products.
You may have heard of them – Gmail, Docs, and Drive.
So Many Questions
So, what exactly can Bard do when it comes to bringing AI to your personal docs and communication?
The better question might be, what can’t it do? Or maybe to the point, where will it stop?
They Can See It All
Called Bard Extensions, the new integrations can search your email and documents and provide summaries of particular messages or drives.
Who Needs an Assistant?
And, with the right prompting, Bard can even do some pretty fancy assistant-level stuff.
Such a Hassle
Want to pull up that project schedule the boss jotted down in an email two years ago, but you don’t want to wade through thousands of related messages to get to the answer?
Quick Answers at Your Fingertips
Just tell Bard what you’re looking for in plain English, and you’ll have your answer, or at least potential answers, in mere seconds.
Your Personal Data Analyst
You can also ask bard to pull data out of docs or messages and build charts or tables to help visualize the information.
When You Need It Yesterday
Or, you could ask for a bullet-point summary of that massive legalese email that HR sent out just before Christmas break with policies that go into effect in the New Year.
It Sounds Scary
Of course, that whole bit about pulling data out of docs and “legalese” might raise the hair on the back of your neck.
Trouble Ahead?
After all, if Bard has access to all your information, couldn’t that spell trouble down the road?
No One Will Ever Know
Not according to Google, who says that it won’t use your data to train Bard’s model.
And they also promise that no humans other than you will see the information you give Bard access to.
They Pinky Swear
They even vow not to use your information to figure out which ads to show you while you’re browsing the net.
Even Mom Isn’t Safe
That’s good news for anyone who’s had that indescribable “watched” feeling when an ad pops up related to a phone conversation you just had with your mom.
You Have a Choice
The other good news, for now at least, is that you don’t have to opt in to letting Bard get at all your stuff.
A Harmless Experiment
Right now, Google is terming these features an “experiment,” and you have to actively turn on the Google Workspace Bard Extension in order for it to gain access to your information.
Out of the Lab
But, like many other big tech experiments, you have to wonder how long it will be before Bard is listening by default.
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The post Google’s Privacy Pledge: Can Bard Read Your Email Without Spying? A Sneak Peek into the Future of AI first appeared on Mama Say What?!.
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / Jay Fog. The people shown in the images are for illustrative purposes only, not the actual people featured in the story.
