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OpenAI and Google made a splash in the world of artificial intelligence this week.
In a studio seemingly straight out of the 1970s Merv Griffin Show, OpenAI brought the “magic” to improve the ChatGPT ecosystem. Created a model that can analyze images, videos, and voice, added a new desktop app, and more.
Google got a little cheeky with its news. Elsewhere during the OpenAI event, Google previewed Gemini's new features. This includes using the camera to describe what's going on in the image and giving real-time spoken feedback (exactly what OpenAI demonstrated).
The next day, Google demonstrated the new features, including visualizations, at Google I/O, although their demos weren't as cute or implemented on a Merv Griffin set.
What does all this AI news mean for marketers and content? Will it create tsunami-like waves for marketers? Or will it be more gentle waves?
We asked Robert Rose, CMI's chief strategy advisor, for his opinion. Watch the video or read on to find out what he has to say:
Listen to what wasn't said
The most interesting thing about OpenAI and Google's announcements wasn't the new features, but what they didn't say. But before I get to that, let's take a look at what they said.
OpenAI has launched GPT-4o. The “o” stands for “omni” – an allusion to the new all-encompassing multimodal application. The more efficient model supports both paid and free versions, which is good news for those who have free accounts.
GPT-4o enables more human voice activation. It can express emotions more effectively and even sings for users (check out the video above as an example). It's also more responsive, allowing users to pause while speaking.
OpenAI also announced a new ChatGPT desktop app with voice and image capabilities.
Google offered similar news with updates to its Gemini AI ecosystem. It now has a multi-modal capability and image processing systems. There were some impressive demos shown where Gemini was asked to locate things while walking through a room.
But Google also did what Google does and added features that integrate with email, document creation and its Android operating system.
All the news was interesting and different. It made it clearer where each company was going.
Should marketers care?
But what does all this new AI from OpenAI and Google mean for marketers?
Not much.
The most interesting thing was not announced.
Just four days before OpenAI's announcement, there were reports of a new web search feature for ChatGPT. They even said that this was the reason why OpenAI scheduled its release the day before Google's I/O conference. Well, OpenAI didn't touch on ideas about search and marketing.
Some might argue that OpenAI's December update to its learning model and making it free to all supposedly enables web search using AI. But the company never called it “web search” or marketed it as such.
Google has weighed in on web search, announcing that its AI Overviews feature will be available to everyone at the top of search results by the end of the year. Yes, this is the same feature (formerly known as Search Generative Experience) that many of you have already seen. But the company hasn't revealed anything particularly new for search.
And neither company commented on how their announcements would impact how companies and content are found online.
OpenAI and Google view AI as a personal service. It makes someone, not just any company, more effective at handling information.
As I mentioned earlier, Gemini's new features integrate with Google's Office applications and will help people create mobile apps.
But they have really focused on individual and personal service. I'm fascinated by the two biggest AI players who are “consuming” AI and making it work for non-technical consumers rather than turning it into a martech tool for businesses.
Of course, smaller players are integrating AI capabilities into their martech tools. Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft, and even Google (which was talked about at the launch event and where they may have an advantage) do this on their larger platforms. However, all of these features seem like personal productivity boosts rather than integrated, team-focused tools.
Where does this recent wave of announcements from Google and OpenAI leave pure AI companies focused on improving their marketing teams? Is it possible that AI is simply best suited for individuals and NOT teams? Will these enterprise-level companies be stuck between existing tools with AI capabilities and the big AI companies with personal services?
It will be interesting to watch.
This is the path for marketing and AI
But the latest AI news also convinces me even more that it is the best path for companies looking to integrate generative AI into their marketing. It will not be a standard tool or permission to allow team members to use ChatGPT.
To do this, you need to really understand your processes, workflows, and use cases and then figure out what features serve them best.
Here's how to get your own Merv Griffin set – and demonstrate to your bosses how AI will change the world of your marketing.
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Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute
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