Is Google Losing The Plot?

Welcome to the first-ever Benzinga Tech Trends newsletter! Here's your weekly cheat sheet for staying ahead of the tech curve. Every week, we'll break down the biggest stories and trends you don't want to miss.

In this week’s newsletter, we take a look at the controversy around Google’s Gemini AI chatbot and what tech billionaires are saying about it.

Google has been trying to play catch up with AI startups, especially OpenAI and Perplexity AI.

The Sundar Pichai-led company undertook a rebranding exercise as well in the short time that its AI chatbot has existed – it’s now Gemini, not Bard.

Earlier this month, Gemini got a power up – Google added the ability to generate images using text prompts.

The best part was that it also worked in the free version, so users could get a taste of exactly what it’s like without paying a dime.

However, it has now run into trouble: soon after its rollout, users discovered that Gemini’s image generator is not really accurate.

Gemini doesn’t know what its founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, look like.

It even made a mess of the Founding Fathers, famous scientists, and other important personalities.

This landed Gemini in trouble, with tech billionaires and users flaming the chatbot on social media.

Startup accelerator Y Combinator co-founder Paul Graham called Gemini a “joke,” while Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk flamed it by calling it a “woke mind virus.”

On the flip side, Mark Cuban agreed with Meta Platforms’ chief AI scientist Yann LeCun who has repeatedly said that creating an unbiased AI is impossible. “Is it possible to produce an AI system that is not biased? And the answer is, absolutely not.”

Google responded to the backlash by temporarily halting Gemini’s ability to generate images of people. Users can still generate images of inanimate objects, though.

However, between this controversy and Gemini getting something as basic as the Super Bowl scoreline wrong, it seems as if Google is beginning to lose the plot, especially with a fast-rising startup like Perplexity winning praise from tech billionaires like Nvidia’s Jensen Huang.

This Week In Tech

Neither Sundar Pichai Nor Sergey Brin—This Ex-Employee Warned Google 5 Years Ago That AI Was Coming For Their Search Engine - Read the article here. 

Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin Admits To Rushing 'Messed Up' Gemini Image Generator Without Proper Testing - Read the article here. 

Microsoft Engineer Raises Alarm Over AI Tool Copilot Generating 'Disturbing' Graphic Content, Ignoring Copyrights: 'An Eye-Opening Moment' - Read the article here. 

'Godfather Of AI' Explains Why ChatGPT, Copilot, And Other AI Chatbots Hallucinate - Read the article here. 

Amazon Unveils Humanoid Robot 'Digit' At Warehouse: A Glimpse Into Automated Workspaces - Read the article here.

Best Deals Of The Week

Apple 15-inch MacBook Air with M2 — $1,499, after a $400 discount

Apple AirPods Pro (2nd generation) — $189, after a $60 discount

Apple 10.9-inch iPad Air (5th generation) — $450, after a $150 discount

OpenAir Elite Plan: Lifetime Subscription — $80, after a $710 discount

Amazon Echo Auto — $8.99, after a $41 discount

PhiGolf World Tour Edition Golf Simulator — $150, after a $100 discount

Disclosure: We may receive a commission for purchases made through affiliate links in this newsletter, but our recommendations remain independent. 

That's all for this week! If you found these updates useful, you'll definitely like more from this newsletter. Get deeper dives, hot takes, and all the latest tech news delivered straight to your inbox.