Google works on AI reasoning and follows OpenAI efforts – BNN Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) — Google is working on artificial intelligence software that mimics human thinking abilities, similar to OpenAI's o1, marking a new front in the rivalry between the tech giant and the fast-growing startup.

In recent months, several teams at Alphabet Inc.'s Google have made progress in developing AI-based reasoning software, according to people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because the information is confidential. Such software programs are better suited for solving multi-step problems in areas such as mathematics and computer programming.

AI researchers are pursuing reasoning models in search of the next significant advancement in technology. Google, like OpenAI, is trying to approximate human thinking using a technique known as “chain-of-thought prompting,” according to two of the people. In this technique, developed by Google, the software pauses for a few seconds before responding to a written prompt, while behind the scenes and invisible to the user, it considers a series of related prompts and then combines what appears to be the best answer.

Google declined to comment on the effort.

Google and OpenAI have been locked in an intense battle for AI supremacy, particularly since OpenAI's release of ChatGPT, a popular chatbot that some investors fear will eventually make Google Search obsolete. Google has taken several steps to regain its lead, including merging its top research labs into the Google DeepMind unit and strengthening relationships between researchers and product teams. Still, the search giant continues to make slower progress in releasing AI products, pausing to consider ethical issues, the need to live up to the public's expectations of trust in its brand, and the competing interests of multiple similar efforts across the massive organization.

Since OpenAI unveiled its o1 model, known internally as Strawberry, in mid-September, some at DeepMind have feared the company has fallen behind, according to a person familiar with the matter. But employees are no longer as concerned as they were after ChatGPT was introduced after Google showcased some of its own work, the person said.

Despite the slower pace of Google product adoption, the company remains a formidable player, said Oren Etzioni, a senior AI researcher who founded TrueMedia.org, a nonprofit dedicated to combating political disinformation.

“Technically, Google’s capabilities have always been top notch. They were just more conservative when they introduced it,” Etzioni said. “It’s a marathon and it’s up to everyone to win.”

In July, Google introduced AlphaProof, which specializes in mathematical thinking, and AlphaGeometry 2, an updated version of a geometry-focused model the company launched earlier this year. The programs have mastered four of the six problems in the International Mathematical Olympiad, an annual competition in which students tackle topics such as algebra and geometry, Google said in a blog post.

At its developer conference in May, Google gave a glimpse of an AI assistant called Astra that can use a phone's camera to see the world around it and answer questions, such as telling a user where they left their glasses. Google said some Assistant features could be integrated into its flagship Gemini AI model later this year.

“Advanced mathematical reasoning is a critical skill in modern AI,” Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, wrote in a post on the social network X in July.

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