Report: Google working on character chatbots, could integrate with YouTube

Google, specifically the Labs team, is working on chatbots that feature a personality and/or emulate existing characters/people. 

According to The Information, Google Labs is “developing a product for creating and conversing with customizable chatbots, which could be modeled on celebrities or made by users.” Powered by Gemini models, you’d create a chatbot by specifying the personality and appearance.

Google might partner with “influencers to create chatbots based on them.” The project might launch this year as a standalone project. It seems well-suited for Google Labs and the conversational nature of large-language models. After all, Google used Pluto and airplane chatbots to demo LaMDA at I/O 2021.

Looking ahead, Google has “discussed eventually integrating it into YouTube.” This would provide a comparable experience to what Meta/Instagram already offers, though user demand looks tepid.

From a logistics standpoint, Google would need a mobile experience for users to easily engage with these chatbots. Google Messages or Chat integration right out of the gate would be odd since this is just an experiment, so a PWA experience is the most likely outcome. 

This effort is different from Gems, which are customized versions of Gemini for specific needs. Announced at I/O 2024 in May and due to arrive in the coming months, example Gems include a yoga coach, math tutor, and “recipe guru.” Google will offer pre-made Gems, like a “Learning Coach,” to all users, but Gemini Advanced subscribers will be able to make custom ones.