Google’s NotebookLM launches globally and beneficial properties Gemini 1.5 Professional without cost

Google is increasing its research-oriented AI software, NotebookLM, to greater than 200 nations and territories past the US. In addition to wider availability, the search large has introduced that NotebookLM will now be powered by Gemini 1.5 Professional below the hood. The latter is notably Google’s present flagship language mannequin, in any other case solely obtainable in case you pay $20 per 30 days for a Gemini Superior subscription.

The newest launch of NotebookLM additionally beneficial properties a couple of new handy options, reminiscent of the choice to import new exterior sources like net URLs and Google Slides shows. As soon as imported right into a challenge (or pocket book), NotebookLM can reference these sources to reply questions through a chatbot-style interface. Past that, it might probably additionally create supporting content material reminiscent of FAQs, examine guides, and timelines of occasions. You possibly can export these as a pinned be aware inside the challenge or draft your personal for future reference.

In my testing, NotebookLM was not in a position to fetch up-to-date details about any latest world occasions. That is in contrast to Google’s Gemini chatbot, which might search the net even in case you don’t explicitly ask it to. Put merely, NotebookLM will solely seek the advice of its inner data base plus any offered supply materials on prime of that and draw the road right here. To quell fears of AI hallucinations, responses inside NotebookLM can even include inline citations just like how Microsoft’s Copilot hyperlinks again to sources.

On that be aware, NotebookLM now helps including as much as 50 sources per pocket book, a big soar from the earlier restrict of simply 5. Every supply doc can embrace 500,000 phrases of textual content, which helps clarify why Google has tapped its highest-end language mannequin.

When Google introduced Gemini 1.5 Professional earlier this 12 months, it claimed the mannequin showcased “a breakthrough in long-context understanding.” Extra particularly, the corporate claims it might probably deal with as much as a million tokens, longer than competing language fashions like GPT-4o. NotebookLM takes benefit of Gemini 1.5 Professional’s multimodal capabilities, that means it might probably reply questions on graphs and pictures in its sources.

NotebookLM is certainly one of Google’s many AI experiments presently below lively improvement, but it surely’s on the extra polished finish of the spectrum. One other challenge, dubbed AI Overviews, sparked controversy after providing harmful recommendation starting from consuming rocks to including non-toxic glue to a pizza. Google launched AI Overviews to pick beta testers within the US below “Search Generative Expertise” final 12 months. If NotebookLM follows the identical path, it could develop into a mainline Google product within the coming months.