AI tools have It’s here to stay, helping us scour the web or decide what to wear, improve the visuals of a movie, find a better job, and more. Over time, these tools will of course become smarter and equipped with more features, such as being able to search the web for images.
This is a feature just added by ChatGPT competitor Google Bard. You can ask for an image directly, just like you would in a standard Google web search, and you can also get an image that matches the text.
In its changelog, Google says images can “bring concepts to life, make suggestions more persuasive, and enhance responses when you ask for visual information.” In other words, whether it’s explaining a scientific concept or recommending a restaurant, it Both can add a little oomph to the text Bard produces.
As of this writing, ChatGPT is not yet capable of generating images—the OpenAI bot is entirely text-based, although it can display text in many formats, including tables.
The image appears in the answer
At least for now, when you ask Bard a question, there’s no toggle switch to turn images on or off in the regular results Bard generates: the bot will only include an image if it thinks it’s helpful.
Some of the searches we’ve done come with pictures, including bar recommendations, explanations of how optical illusions work, and inquiries about the first working airplane.
When we asked for an explanation of what DNA is or a summary of the Battle of Hastings, Bard’s output contained no pictures. However, you can specifically request relevant illustrations or photos in your query and Google Bard will always accommodate your request.
