Google Introduces Gemini Live, a Cutting-Edge Two-Way Voice Feature Competing with ChatGPT’s Advanced Voice Mode

Google unveiled numerous new Pixel devices at its Made By Google event on Tuesday. In addition to the hardware announcements, the tech titan also dedicated significant time to showcasing new artificial intelligence (AI) features for its Gemini chatbot. Among these, Gemini Live stood out as the most notable upgrade of the evening, introducing voice capabilities to the chatbot. This allows users to engage in verbal conversations with the AI without the need for typing or reading messages. According to its description, the feature bears resemblance to ChatGPT’s advanced Voice Mode, recently made available to select paying subscribers.

Gemini Live Unveiled By Google

At the event, the company introduced Gemini Live as a mobile conversational experience. Essentially, this feature enables Gemini to engage in natural and spontaneous conversations with varying voice tones and emotions, resulting in AI responses that closely mimic human-like interactions. Google emphasized that users will have a choice of 10 distinct voices, each with its own energy level, pitch, and tonality.

In a blog post, the company highlighted that Gemini Live will provide a hands-free experience, allowing it to continue listening to the user and responding verbally even when the device is locked or running in the background, akin to a standard phone call.

This new mode enables users to engage in detailed discussions with the AI, providing context or asking follow-up questions to elicit more precise responses. Users can interrupt Gemini Live mid-response to provide additional information, or pause the conversation to resume later.

Initially unveiled at Google I/O, Gemini Live’s functionality bears similarity to OpenAI’s ChatGPT Advanced Voice Mode. Notably, OpenAI introduced this feature just a day before Google, at its Spring event. Google, however, offers a wider range of voice options and a larger context window (one million tokens, extendable to two million tokens for developers), potentially giving it a competitive advantage. These features are still in their early stages, and widespread rollout is yet to be seen.

Google announced the rollout of Gemini Live to Gemini Advanced subscribers on Android devices. Initially available only in English, the company plans to expand language support and introduce the feature to iOS in the following weeks. The Gemini Advanced subscription is part of the Google One AI Premium plan, priced at Rs. 1,950 per month.