Google appeared to try to outplay OpenAI by dropping a teaser for its AI tools just minutes before the big reveal of GPT-4o.
Google posted a demo video of its own AI voice assistant and image recognition tool on X about 30 minutes before OpenAI’s livestream, which it held the day before Google’s I/O conference.
The timing of the post underlines the intense rivalry between Big Tech firms, which are racing to launch competing AI features.
GPT-4o is the latest version of OpenAI’s chatbot, which can respond to audio prompts almost instantly like a human, translate languages in real time, and even assist learners as a tutor.
Some people regarded OpenAI’s decision to announce GPT-4o the day before Google’s highly anticipated I/O conference as a deliberate tactic.
One X user said OpenAI is “seriously challenging Google with all their guns blazing,” while another said OpenAI’s timing of its reveal is “vicious.”
But Google seemed to fire a shot back by posting its teaser clip just before the livestream, which saw OpenAI launch a lifelike voice assistant with visual features like identifying objects.
The clip shows a person conversing with Google’s Gemini voice assistant. He points his camera at a stage and asks what is happening — it responds: “It looks like people are setting up for a large event.”
Demis Hassabis, who leads its AI efforts at Google DeepMind, said in an X post, “Super excited for my first #GoogleIO tomorrow and to share what we’ve been working on!”
Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.