From AI to Pixel Fold and Health Connect: Google I/O 2023 Delivers
By YML
Sundar Pichai said “AI” or “artificial intelligence” 37 times during his keynote address at Google I/O. Yes, rather sadly, we counted. Google I/O 2023 brought a bevy of intriguing updates that have the potential to impact digital product strategy for companies across all industries. As part of YML’s four-year partnership with Google, our latest work was on full display in a technical session at Google I/O about the latest developments in on-device Machine Learning using MediaPipe Tasks.
While AI was the headline, here are the key launches and features that caught our eye at Google I/O:
Bard Proves Strength Against ChatGPT
The real introduction of Bard is a neat follow up to ChatGPT. The design is much more attractive and it has access to information post-2021 without any extra plugins, game changer.
Google Unveils AI Model — PaLM 2
PaLM 2 is one of the largest and most powerful models released to date. It was trained on 540-Billion Parameters and has the potential to unlock numerous use cases for companies with digital products.This update has the potential to transform the way digital products interact with users and personalize user experiences. Enterprise companies can use PaLM 2 to integrate generative AI into new and existing products, which can support producing natural language responses to user queries, creating chatbots and virtual assistants, and automating content creation for websites.
You can get on the PaLM API Waitlist here: https://developers.generativeai.google/
Pixel Fold Debut
The launch of the Pixel Fold, a foldable smartphone with an OLED screen. I still fondly remember my old Nokia flip phone but the OLED screen is next level Bond 007. This new device represents a significant development in mobile technology, offering a new form factor and design that could impact the way users interact with their devices, especially for productivity and entertainment purposes.
Learn more about YML's 4-year Google Partnership here.
Health Connect Elevates How Users Track Data
Google has launched Health Connect, a platform for storing health data that's currently in beta, but expected to be part of mobile devices with the release of Android 14 later this year. Health Connect allows users to share data between health and fitness apps and is now available for developers to integrate with. Health and Fitness companies can leverage this update to provide richer and more personalized healthcare experiences to their users by integrating their digital products with Health Connect.
And don't forget about how Google is granting limited access to its Medical Large Language Model, called Med-PaLM 2. This new technology uses AI to provide more accurate and safe answers to medical questions. Google announced Med-PaLM 2 a few weeks ahead I/O.
Android 14 Optimized Across the Spectrum
The release of Android 14 includes a number of new features and improvements, such as a new design language, improved performance, and new privacy features.
The Launch of Google Wallet Will Replace Google Pay
Google Wallet will allow users to store their credit cards, debit cards, loyalty cards, and other payment methods in one place. Yeah, it’s just like Apple Wallet but on Android.
Google Maps Makes Magic
New features for Google Maps, including live traffic updates, improved navigation, and augmented reality features. This actually blew me away; the integration of AI generated 3D visualizations and even dynamic weather feels more like playing GTA than navigating a map.
Android's First Party Hardware Ecosystem Takes Shape
The release of new hardware products, including the Pixel 7a smartphone, the Pixel Watch smartwatch, and the Pixel Tablet tablet to round out the Android first party hardware ecosystem.
All in all, an impressive showing by Google that certainly wowed our team more than ever before. Get in touch to discuss how YML can help you leverage the latest Google launches and features within your next digital project.