I've been using Google's Pixel line of phones since the first one dropped years ago.
I have a confession to make: I don't use Google Assistant all that much.
Also: How to drastically improve your privacy on Google Bard with this one simple setting.
That being said, rumors abound that Google is considering replacing the current Assistant with its Bard AI. Another rumor is that OpenAI is going to make a ChatGPT option for Google Assistant.
If Google were to replace Assistant with AI, my guess is that there would be an exponential rise in users.
On top of that, the AI is going to learn an awful lot about people.
This could wind up being a situation where users will discover they should have opted out early on because their information is not only being saved but it's also being used to further train AI. Also: 4 ways to overcome your biggest worries about generative AI. You see, the questions keep piling on.
Although I am vocal about keeping AI out of artistic, journalistic, and political endeavors, I'm not against using AI where it has practical and useful applications that would help improve quality of life or how well a piece of technology functions.
When AI crosses the line of privacy, things get dicey.
Remember, a Bard or ChatGPT assistant isn't Siri or Google Assistant - this is much, much more, and it could lead to serious breaches of privacy.
If you think web browser fingerprinting can create an accurate profile of you, wait until you see what AI can do.
This next question is a big one and it's directly related to the first.
AI takes a serious amount of computing power to do what it does; far more than what even a flagship phone can offer.
Now, I understand that all of the current assistants use AI. However, they aren't straight-up AI. My guess is that at least some of the processing power will have to be augmented by Google's own servers.
I'm not saying that will dramatically slow down the process, but it won't be nearly as fast as it would be if it were all handled locally.
If Android does have to offload some of those queries to Google's servers, that means the data will be transferred over the internet.
If Google's AI-powered assistant is going to circumnavigate our privacy, then I want nothing to do with it.
Google may have discovered a way to retain our privacy and keep all queries processed locally on the phone.
Until the company releases a statement or documentation to state those very things, we have to assume the answer to those questions might not have the best interests of the consumer in mind.
One thing is for certain: 2024 will be a rather interesting year for phone technology.
This Cyber News was published on www.zdnet.com. Publication date: Tue, 09 Jan 2024 19:13:04 +0000