When we think about AI chatbots, two names immediately come to mind: Chat GPT, the pioneer that made the technology mainstream; and Google Bard, the competitor produced by the biggest internet tech company in the world. But are they the same thing under a different wrapping, or do they actually have essential characteristics that set them apart?
While both are AI models based on Natural Language Processing, meaning that they were designed to communicate with humans in a way that feels organic, responsive, and conversational; and while both take prompts to reply to questions and follow instructions, some key differences may alter the user experience significantly.
These differences may be technical, having to do with how the model was designed and trained, and how updated and powerful it is; they may be of interface and usability, leading to how comfortable, easy, and accessible they are to use; or they may be of purpose: how well each one fits different tasks.
Let’s see some of these differences and how they affect the chatbot experience.
Chat GPT
Open AI’s Chat GPT was the pioneer that massively brought this revolutionary technology to our hands, and as such, it is the most familiar one, being used as the standard for the whole industry that is forming around AI tech.
Read: How To Use ChatGPT – A Beginner’s Guide.
It is based on the GPT model that was trained with data until late 2021, and unlike Google Bard, it does not yet have access to the internet to provide answers based on more recent information. But this will soon change, according to the Verge.
It is important to bear in mind that there are two versions of Chat GPT: one available for free based on a more basic GPT-3.5 model, and the most advanced one based on GPT-4, which is available with a paid subscription only. Chat GPT-4 is multimedial, so you can enter prompts with texts and images, something that Google Bard does not yet have.
Its interface is quite basic in comparison to Bard’s, and it does not offer additional functionalities linking it with the outside internet. But it does have a history of conversations that users can easily access for reference.
However, Bing Chat, Microsoft’s chatbot that also uses GPT-4 thanks to its close collaboration with Open AI, can be thought of as a Chat GPT integrated into the internet. As such, it has up-to-date content and a user-friendly interface that allows you to calibrate the chatbot’s reply according to your needs and expectations. Additionally, it offers suggested follow-up questions that can improve the experience, letting you know of useful questions you didn’t know you had.
Google Bard
Although Google Bard started second in the chatbot race, being released a few months after Chat GPT, it has quickly caught up and is now leading in some important aspects.
Read: How To Use Google Bard AI?
Most importantly, Bard’s model architecture, LaMDA, was updated to PaLM 2, which draws information to the model from the internet in real time. While Chat GPT is currently limited to a data set trained until 2021, Bard can give you updated answers with fresh information at any time.
Unlike Chat GPT, there is no paywall to access the most advanced version of Google Bard. It is free to use and just a click away from your Google search bar. However, Bard is not currently available in some parts of the world like the EU or Canada, and only supports English, Korean, and Japanese, whereas Chat GPT is also available in Spanish, French, German, and many more languages.
Another advantage of Bard is that it gives you a “Google it” button for each reply, which makes it easier to fact-check potential incorrect information and to extend your research beyond the chatbot itself.
With a more dynamic and user-friendly experience, Google Bard is more accessible to wider audiences and is potentially more prone to democratize the chatbot experience to more users, including those who currently feel intimidated or fearful of AI.
Which One is Better? It Depends!
According to recent tests made by tech reviewer MKBHD, Google Bard offers faster responses overall than its competitors. Being a Google product, it is more widely available and more likely to be used by all types of audiences.
However, Bing Chat, which uses Chat GPT’s same technology, is more customizable than Bard, cites more sources, and seems to be more creative at the moment.
It’s important to keep in mind that chatbots are very rapidly evolving, and as competition between companies develops, some will push the others to improve in consequence. Soon, Chat GPT will incorporate web browsing as Bard does, and Google will most likely improve its model so it has the power to perform tasks with the accuracy of GPT architecture.
In the end, users are winners of this race, having the chance to use several tools depending on each one’s advantages for every user’s purposes.
Do you have a preferred chatbot? Do you use several of them at the same time? let us know in the comment section.
