We put Google’s new AI writing assistant to the test

But her work is starting to look sloppy on more specific requests. When the system was asked to write a note about consumer preferences in Paraguay compared to Uruguay, the system incorrectly described Paraguay as less populated. They are hallucinating or making up the meaning behind them A song from a 60’s Hindi movie They are performed at my pre-wedding welcome event.

Ironically, when asked, the system described Duet AI as a startup founded by two ex-Googlers to develop AI for the music industry with over $10 million in funding from investors like Andreessen Horowitz and Y Combinator. It seems that there is no such company. Google encourages users to report inaccuracies with a thumbs-down button below AI-generated responses.

Behr says Google screens topics, keywords, and other content signals to avoid responses that are offensive or unfairly affect people, particularly based on demographics or political or religious beliefs. She acknowledged that the system makes mistakes, but said that feedback from public testing is vital to countering the tendency of AI systems to reverse biases that appear in their training data or pass on made-up information. “AI will be a project forever,” she says.

Still, Beer says early adopters, such as employees at Instacart and Victoria’s Secret’s Adore Me lingerie brand, have been positive about the technology. Instacart spokeswoman Lauren Svensson said — in a handwritten email — that the company is excited to test Google’s AI features but isn’t ready to share any insights.

My tests left me concerned that the means of AI writing could kill originality, at the expense of humans on the receiving end of AI text. I imagine readers contemplating the stale emails and documents as if they might be forced to read Google’s 6,000-word privacy policy. It’s unclear how much individuality Google’s tools can absorb and whether they will come to our aid or replace us.

Behr says that in Google’s internal testing, emails from colleagues haven’t become “vanilla” or “generic” yet. Tools have enhanced human ingenuity and creativity, not suppressed them, she said. Behr would also love an AI model that mimics her style, but “these are the kinds of things we’re still evaluating,” she says.

Despite the disappointments and limitations, Duet’s features in Docs and Gmail seem likely to appeal to some users who are beginning to rely on ChatGPT or a competing AI writing program. Google goes further than most other options can match, and what we’re seeing today is just a preview of what’s to come.

When – or if – the duo matures from promising editor to impartial and document-finishing expert, using them will become unstoppable. Until then, when it comes to writing those heartfelt vows and speeches, that’s a blank screen left entirely to me.