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Google’s NotebookLM, brief for “Notebook Language Model” a stand-alone cloud-based AI workspace the place customers can add paperwork and hyperlinks and ask questions of them by way of a chatbot-style textual content interface, has not too long ago received many plaudits amongst AI employees and leaders for introducing a brand new function, “Audio Overviews,” that permits customers to create customized, AI generated podcasts with synthetic host voices discussing the content material uploaded by the person.
The function, like the remainder of NotebookLM, is free for Google Account customers.
Now, based mostly on the success and suggestions to the podcast function, NotebookLM’s product chief Raiza Martin says her workforce can be including new updates to permit customers to regulate extra of the Audio Overviews (AOs), together with deciding on completely different “personas” to be the AI hosts, in addition to choose the size of the podcast episode.
“We’re going to lean in here and try to accelerate more of this type of stuff in the product,” she wrote in a submit from her private account on X, including, “After that initial moment of delight, people want to influence the content. Makes sense – now you want knobs for format, length, personas, voices, languages – I’m keeping track and we’re working on it (some will come much faster than others).”
In her submit, Martin acknowledged the thrill surrounding a current “jailbreak” that led to some sudden and artistic outputs from the instrument, together with the AI hosts expressing amazement and existential dread at “discovering” they had been AI characters.
NotebookLM’s Audio Overviews have additionally been utilized in ways in which even shocked Martin. She shared a private anecdote: “I was literally [crying emoji] when Sam said he was going to call his wife!”
This highlights how NotebookLM can evoke robust emotional reactions from its customers, an space the workforce is keen to discover additional.
NotebookLM has attracted consideration amid a crowded, fast-paced AI panorama
Reflecting on the tempo of innovation in AI, Martin famous how shortly the world has tailored to AI instruments like NotebookLM.
She remarked that customers have grow to be extra targeted on asking how issues are completed somewhat than reacting with excessive feelings.
This shift in angle might point out broader acceptance of AI-powered instruments as they combine extra seamlessly into on a regular basis workflows.
As AI continues to advance, NotebookLM is without doubt one of the instruments pushing the boundaries of how we work together with and course of data.
In a current VentureBeat interview, Martin identified that company groups and academic customers have more and more turned to NotebookLM to streamline analysis and knowledge-sharing, suggesting that NotebookLM’s capabilities make it best for enterprises in addition to particular person customers.
“We saw students using it to accelerate their learning and understanding, but professionals are doing the exact same things,” Martin stated.
Increasing use instances for AI generated podcasts
From producing podcasts to managing artistic writing initiatives like Dungeons & Dragons campaigns, NotebookLM’s use instances proceed to increase.
Andrej Karpathy, former head of Tesla AI and co-founder of OpenAI, praised this improvement on his X account, saying the product may very well be “touching on a whole new territory of highly compelling LLM product formats.”
Equally, AI influencer and guide Allie Ok. Miller additionally shared on X immediately how NotebookLM helps her summarize content material and discover sign in a world of noise.
Martin confirmed that extra codecs and options are within the pipeline, guaranteeing that customers can have much more flexibility in how they work together with the instrument.
As Google continues to iterate on NotebookLM, the workforce stays targeted on listening to customers and refining the instrument based mostly on their suggestions.
Within the fast-evolving world of AI, Google’s NotebookLM stands out not only for its technical prowess but in addition for its skill to adapt to the wants and creativity of its customers.
