Google Is Combining Its Android And Research Teams Amid AI Push

Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced on Thursday that the company is consolidating its teams that focus on building artificial intelligence models across Research and DeepMind divisions in the latest push to enhance its AI portfolio. 

Google Brings Responsible AI Team Under DeepMind to Scale AI Development 

In a blog post on Thursday, April 18, the search giant said it will relocate its Responsible AI division, which focuses on developing safe AI, from Google Research to the DeepMind division so they are closer to the action where AI models are built and scaled. 

The move comes on the heels of growing concerns about AI safety and increasing global calls for regulatory clarity over the nascent technology. 

Deepmind, led by British computer scientist Demis Hassabis, helped Google develop Gemini – its most advanced artificial intelligence model to date that can understand and source various forms of information such as text, audio, image, and video. 

Last year, the Silicon Valley giant merged its research units Google Brain and Deepmind to focus purely on AI development to get ahead of rivals in the game like Microsoft and OpenAI – the creator of generative AI models ChatGPT, Sora, and DALL-E. 

Google Goes All-In on AI by Bringing Android and Software Divisions Under One Roof

While announcing substantial reorganizations at Google, Pichai also revealed the creation of a new team within the company called ‘Platforms and Devices’  that will oversee the Pixel products, Android and Chrome operating systems, Chrome web browser, Photos, and more.  

The division will be headed by Rick Osterloh, former senior vice president of the ‘Devices and Services team responsible for all of Google’s hardware efforts. Meanwhile, Hiroshi Lockheimer, who headed Android, Chrome, and ChromeOS will be taking on other projects inside of Alphabet – the parent company of Google. 

In an interview with The Verge, Osterloh said the main reason for creating the all-encompassing Platforms and Devices team is AI. He noted that by bringing all of Google’s products and services under one roof, they will be able to do full-stack innovation whenever necessary. 

Osterloh said the move will help Google move forward at a much faster pace when it comes to integrating AI across all of its products. He acknowledged that the restructuring has simplified the pipeline, with there going to be one team under the division that performs AI research and another that works on developing AI products. 

He said the company will now be able to move people around much more quickly when developing new applications based on the output of its latest AI model. 

Google has been busy adding its Gemini model and chatbot to Android smartphones and has big plans to change the way users interact with their devices – including devices running the company’s Android, WearOS, Android Auto, and ChromeOS. 

Google is intensifying its work on generative AI to catch up to allied efforts from Microsoft and OpenAI, which many perceive as being more advanced. Meanwhile, the company has also been shifting its priorities and lowering costs. In January, the tech giant laid off hundreds of employees who were working on its digital assistant, engineering, and hardware teams. 

The company frames the reorganization as a necessary effort to become more focused on AI-powered tools and services. Earlier this year, Google announced the Gemini 1.5 Pro, which is said to be its most advanced AI offering that is capable of handling larger amounts of text, video, and even audio outputs compared to rivals. 

Restructuring Creates New Team Focused on Testing and Evaluating AI Systems

Pichai also announced a new Trust and Safety team that would be focused on testing and evaluating AI systems developed by the company. The move is aimed at addressing the risks associated with rolling out consumer AI products. 

The Alphabet CEO also alluded to an employee protest this week against Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion alliance between Amazon and Google to provide the Israeli government and military with AI and cloud services. On Wednesday, the company fired 28 employees involved in the protest.

More News: EU Needs Complete Shake-Up To Match Rivals In Developing New Digital And Green Tech, Says Report