Google’s chatbot Bard can now answer questions about YouTube videos in an experimental version. This isn’t entirely new: when it was first introduced in February 2023, Bard’s understanding of YouTube was limited to basic descriptions. However, the new upgrade showcases significant improvements.
Google released an example highlighting the enhanced YouTube abilities of the chatbot: “For instance, if you’re searching for videos on making olive oil cake, you can now ask how many eggs are needed for the recipe in the first video.”
Although it’s still in its early stages, this demonstrates Bard’s ability to filter and interpret important details from videos. According to Google, the aim is to provide users with a “deeper engagement” with the videos and enable “meaningful conversations” about the information they contain.
Analyzing Transcripts
Talkwithtech.com tested Bard’s YouTube extension and had it analyze several videos. A pattern emerged: when it didn’t work, the error message indicated that the content lacked a text file. This suggests that Bard doesn’t conduct image or audio analysis but rather reads transcripts.
When a transcript was available, the results were impressive. Bard was asked to read and provide a table comparing the real timeline with the one depicted in the video “For All Mankind Alternate Timeline Explained | Changes 1969 – 1982,” and it worked well.
Currently, the YouTube analysis feature isn’t available in the German version of Bard. However, tricking the system by using a VPN to appear in the USA and switching the language in the Google account to English should make the attempt work even from Germany.
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