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05/04/2024

Google Claims To Be Considering An AI Paywall




Google Claims To Be Considering An AI Paywall
There are rumours that Google, the search engine that over a billion people use worldwide, may start charging for premium material produced by artificial intelligence (AI). The Alphabet Inc.-owned corporation is reportedly rethinking its economic strategy and considering enclosing some of its main products behind a paywall.
 
This would be Google's first time charging for any of its material. According to Google, there is nothing new to share "at this time."
 
The Financial Times (FT) claims that Google is considering whether to include specific AI-powered search functionalities in its premium membership services, which now grant users access to Gemini, the company's new AI assistant and Google's take on the popular chatbot ChatGPT.
 
Although the FT stated that engineers were building the know-how required to launch the service, executives are allegedly still undecided on when or not to proceed with the technology.
 
According to the Financial Times, Google's conventional search engine will still be available for free, but members will also see advertisements next to content that matches their search terms.
 
Google has had difficulty adjusting to the AI revolution. Earlier this year, Gemini, a system that can both answer text inquiries and create images in response to text prompts, caused controversy when it accidentally produced an image of the US Founding Fathers that included a black man.
 
Additionally, it produced World War II German soldiers that were misrepresented as Asian and Black men.
 
Google said it was "missing the mark" and quickly "paused" the feature in response to its apology. When it comes to information searches, the corporation remains the top choice for the majority of internet users.
 
With a solid 80%+ of internet users, Google has controlled the desktop search engine market since 2015, according to the international market research firm Statista. It is claimed by several websites to have over a billion users every day.
 
The vast majority of Google's income comes from advertising. With a projected 2023 valuation of $1.6 trillion, its parent company Alphabet is among the largest online corporations globally, according to Statista.
 
However, it has expanded and currently provides a variety of services, including mail, productivity tools, enterprise goods, and mobile devices. In 2023, it had revenues of about $305.6 bn. 
 
Google stated it was "not working on or considering an ad-free search experience" in a statement provided to the media.
 
"As we've done many times before, we'll continue to build new premium capabilities and services to enhance our subscription offerings across Google," the search giant said. "We don't have anything to announce right now."
 
(Source:www.ft.com) 

Christopher J. Mitchell

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