The Google Gemini family of multimodal AI models and the chatbot interface that uses them were first announced in December 2023. It is the successor to the earlier model, Bard. Google developed Gemini in collaboration with Google DeepMind.
Features of Gemini
Multimodal: Gemini can understand, operate across, and combine text, code, audio, images, and video.
A family of models: Gemini includes models of varying sizes for different devices, from data centers to mobile phones.
Integration: Gemini is integrated into many Google products:
The Gemini chatbot, formerly known as Bard.
Google Workspace: Available in side panels for Docs and Gmail to help with writing and drafting.
Mobile assistant: On newer Android devices, Gemini has replaced Google Assistant as the default AI assistant.
Google Cloud: Offered through the Vertex AI platform for developers and businesses to build and scale their own AI applications.
Reasoning capabilities: Gemini has demonstrated enhanced reasoning and problem-solving abilities.
Gemini’s Evolution
March 2023: Bard launched. Bard, the predecessor to Gemini, was launched as an experimental generative AI chatbot based on Google’s LaMDA and PaLM large language models.
December 2023: Gemini announced. Google announced the Gemini family of multimodal models and began integrating a version into the Bard chatbot.
February 2024: Bard becomes Gemini. Google rebranded the Bard chatbot and Duet AI under the “Gemini” brand. A mobile app was also launched for Android and iOS. The premium tier, “Gemini Advanced with Ultra 1.0,” was also introduced.
2024 and 2025: Ongoing development. Google has continued to update the Gemini models with new versions, adding features like video frame extraction, improved coding abilities, and a “thinking model” that reasons through tasks.