Google renames Bard to Gemini and releases Android app and paid subscription

As expected, Google is rebranding its Bard chatbot to Gemini and launching a separate app on Android to replace Google Assistant.

After installing the mobile app on a smartphone, users will be able to access the chatbot using the usual commands for calling Google Assistant, such as “Hey Google”. All AI functions will be available there: image creation, information search, help with writing messages, contextual assistance on pages, etc.

On iOS, the chatbot will be available from the Google app. When users open the app, they will see a switch at the top that will allow them to completely replace the search engine with a chatbot.

In addition, Google is launching a premium version of Gemini Advanced chatbot that will give users access to Google’s most powerful AI model, Ultra 1.0. The subscription price for Advacned is 909.99 UAH/month. The first two months will be free.

The Ultra 1.0 model allows you to better cope with tasks such as more difficult coding scenarios, logical thinking, following instructions, collaborating on creative projects, and more.

In the announcement, the company also said that Advanced will receive new useful features in the coming months, including expanded multimodal model capabilities, improved code creation functions, and the addition and deeper analysis of files, documents, data, etc.

Currently, the Ultra 1.0 AI model is available only in English, but the chatbot itself is already available in more than 150 countries. To get access to Ultra 1.0 and all the Advanced features, you need to subscribe to a appropriate Google One plan.