Google's ChatGPT rival Bard now supports 9 Indian languages, adds Lens integration

Users will also be able to listen to Bard's responses in over 40 languages

Google's artificial intelligence chatbot Bard is adding support for over 40 languages including nine Indian languages and introducing a slew of new features, the tech giant said on July 13, as it looks to challenge rival OpenAI's ChatGPT.

The company said this is the Bard's biggest expansion to date, after opening it up to users in over 180 countries and territories in May 2023. Google had first unveiled Bard in February following the runaway success of ChatGPT that clocked 100 million users within the first two months of its launch.

Among the nine new Indian languages that will be available on Bard include Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati and Urdu. Among other international languages included in this rollout are German, Spanish, Chinese, and Arabic.

Starting today, users will also be able to listen to Bard's responses in over 40 languages. The company states that this feature will be helpful if users want to hear the correct pronunciation of a word or listen to a poem or script. One can simply enter the prompt and select the sound icon to hear Bard’s answers.

Users will also have the option to change the tone and style of Bard's responses in five different ways, including making the response shorter or longer or making them simpler, more professional or casual, to suit the tasks they have at hand. This feature is currently available in English and will soon expand to other languages, the company said.

Google is also expanding Bard to 59 new countries and territories including Brazil and across the European Union. With this expansion, the search giant said Bard is now available in most parts of the world, and in the most widely spoken languages.

"As part of our bold and responsible approach to AI, we’ve proactively engaged with experts, policymakers and privacy regulators on this expansion" Jack Krawczyk, Product Lead, Bard and Amarnag Subramanya, Vice President, Engineering, Bard wrote in a blogpost.

"As we bring Bard to more regions and languages over time, we’ll continue to use our AI Principles as a guide, incorporate user feedback, and take steps to protect people’s privacy and data" they stated.

Google Lens integration

Google is also leveraging its visual search capabilities including Google Lens to make Bard more powerful and visual in its responses.

Starting today, users will now be able to upload images in their prompts and queries to seek more information or need help with captions. Bard will use Google Lens capabilities to analyze the photo and provide information or captions to users.

This feature was first introduced in Google's annual developer conference Google I/O in May 2023. Google mentioned that the feature is currently available in US English with plans to soon expand to more languages.

Besides this, Bard will enable users to revisit their conversations with the chatbot by allowing them to pin and rename conversations in over 40 languages. One can also pick up their recent conversations from the sidebar and share part or all of Bard responses with others.

In a briefing with reporters, Subramanya said that coding has become one of the big use cases that people are coming to seek help on Bard. Hence, the tech giant has rolled out the ability for users to export Python code to developer platform Replit, in addition to Google Colab. The feature is available in over 40 languages.