Why Google Thinks It Can Catch Up to ChatGPT

Summary

WSJ Tech News Briefing: Why Google Thinks It Can Catch Up to ChatGPT

Released January 21, 2025

Introduction

In this episode of the Wall Street Journal's "Tech News Briefing," host Bell Lin navigates two pivotal topics in the tech world: effective strategies for managing iPhone storage and the intense rivalry between Google and OpenAI in the chatbot arena. The episode not only provides actionable tips for everyday tech users but also delves deep into Google's ambitious plans to surpass OpenAI's ChatGPT with its new Gemini chatbot. Below is a comprehensive summary capturing all the key discussions, insights, and conclusions from the episode.

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Managing iPhone Storage: Tips from Nicole Nguyen

The episode kicks off with a commonly faced issue among iPhone users: constantly full storage. Personal tech columnist Nicole Nguyen offers a range of solutions to help listeners optimize their device storage.

1. Assessing Storage Usage ([01:35])

Nicole emphasizes the importance of understanding what consumes space on your iPhone:

Nicole Nguyen: "Go to the settings app, then to general, and check iPhone storage. It provides a graph of what's taking up space and offers recommendations for large attachments and app data."

She suggests reviewing and deleting large attachments in messages, as these often duplicate photos and videos stored elsewhere.

2. Upgrading Storage ([01:35])

While not a technical tip, Nicole acknowledges that sometimes the simplest solution is to upgrade your device:

Nicole Nguyen: "You can throw money at the problem and buy a new phone with higher storage. 512 gigabytes is probably the sweet spot for most people."

3. Leveraging Cloud Services ([03:06])

Nicole discusses the benefits of using cloud storage to free up local space:

Nicole Nguyen: "Consider not using iCloud Photos to back up your digital library. Instead, use Google Photos or Amazon Photos. Google Photos offers a 'free up space' feature that deletes local copies after backup, which can significantly reduce storage usage."

She explains the cost-effectiveness of these services, noting that Google Photos starts at $30 a year for 200 gigabytes, and Amazon Photos offers unlimited full-resolution photo storage with an Amazon Prime membership.

4. Optimizing Settings ([04:24])

Nicole provides practical settings adjustments to help manage storage efficiently:

Nicole Nguyen: "Enable 'high efficiency' in the camera settings to compress photo and video sizes. Also, turn on options like auto-deleting old messages and offloading unused apps to keep your device lean."

She highlights features like auto-deleting messages that contain high-resolution images and offloading unused apps, which removes apps but retains their data for future use.

5. Deleting Unnecessary Data ([02:48] & [03:06])

Addressing the humorous notion of deleting essential apps, Bell Lin jokes about not wanting to delete the Tech News Briefing podcast. Nicole clarifies:

Nicole Nguyen: "You can delete episodes you've already listened to."

This ensures that while storage is freed up, users retain access to their favorite content.

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Google vs. OpenAI: The Battle for Chatbot Supremacy

After addressing personal tech challenges, the focus shifts to the broader AI landscape, specifically the competition between Google and OpenAI in the chatbot domain. Reporter Miles Krupa provides an in-depth analysis of Google's strategy to eclipse ChatGPT with its Gemini chatbot.

1. Google's Ambitious Goal ([06:31])

Bell Lin introduces Google's target for the Gemini chatbot:

Bell Lin: "Google's CEO Sundar Pichai recently told employees that he wants its Gemini chatbot to hit 500 million users by the end of this year."

2. Contextualizing the Goal ([06:31] & [07:01])

Miles puts this target into perspective relative to Google's existing user base:

Miles Krupa: "Google has seven products with more than 2 billion users, so 500 million is only a quarter of that. Compared to OpenAI's ChatGPT, which has about 300 million weekly users, Sundar is aiming for something a bit higher."

He notes that while 500 million is substantial, it's achievable given Google's expansive ecosystem.

3. Leveraging Google's Ecosystem ([07:15])

Miles outlines the advantages Google holds in this competitive race:

Miles Krupa: "Google has partnerships with mobile phone makers like Samsung and Motorola. This allows Gemini to be pre-installed as the default mobile assistant or accessible directly from the home screen. Additionally, Google's dominance in search and browser usage provides multiple platforms to integrate and promote Gemini."

These integrations can significantly boost Gemini's visibility and adoption across millions of devices.

4. Advancements in AI Technology ([08:09])

From a technological standpoint, Google has made significant strides to catch up and surpass ChatGPT:

Miles Krupa: "Google has been catching up and even surpassing OpenAI in certain large language model benchmarks. The 'Gemini Chatbot' features 'Deep Research,' which generates research reports by searching the web, differentiating it from ChatGPT."

He highlights Google's ability to innovate and integrate advanced features that enhance user experience, potentially attracting a larger user base.

5. Importance of User Base and Technological Edge ([09:08] & [09:17])

Miles elaborates on why Google's push for a larger user base is crucial:

Miles Krupa: "The launch of ChatGPT in late 2022 was a shock to Google, highlighting potential disruptions in how people access information online. Maintaining a strong presence in the chatbot market is essential to prevent competitors from reshaping search behaviors. A successful Gemini can solidify Google's role in future information access paradigms."

6. Future Implications ([10:18])

Bell Lin wraps up the segment by emphasizing the broader impact of this competition:

Bell Lin: "This competition isn't just about user numbers; it's about shaping the future of information access and maintaining dominance in search. Google's proactive approach with Gemini is a strategic move to ensure it remains at the forefront of AI-driven technologies."

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Conclusion

The episode concludes by underscoring the significance of both personal tech management and the evolving AI landscape. While practical tips help users optimize their daily device usage, the battle between tech giants like Google and OpenAI illustrates the dynamic and competitive nature of the tech industry. Google's strategic initiatives with the Gemini chatbot reflect its commitment to innovation and maintaining its leadership role amidst rising competition.

Key Takeaways:

• iPhone Storage Management: Users can optimize their device storage by assessing usage, upgrading storage, leveraging cloud services like Google Photos, adjusting device settings, and managing app data effectively.

• AI Chatbot Competition: Google aims to surpass OpenAI's ChatGPT by leveraging its extensive ecosystem, technological advancements, and strategic partnerships, targeting 500 million Gemini users by the end of the year.

• Future of Information Access: The rivalry between Google and OpenAI is pivotal in shaping how users interact with information, emphasizing the importance of innovation and strategic positioning in the tech industry.

This episode of "Tech News Briefing" offers valuable insights for both everyday tech users and industry observers, highlighting the intersection of personal technology management and broader technological advancements.

Transcript

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[Bell Lin]

Welcome to Tech News Briefing. It's Tuesday, January 21st. I'm Bell Lin for the Wall Street Journal. Is your iPhone storage constantly full? Mine is. We'll find out how to get rid of pesky storage hogs and help extend the time between purging your phone and then bring on the chatbot wars. Google has a bold new goal for its Gemini chatbot, and that includes surpassing the capabilities and usership of its rival, OpenAI's ChatGPT. Our reporter Miles Krupa tells us why Google is in it to win it. But first, iPhone storage creep. It's a nefarious thing. It's been happening on our devices for the past 10 years or so as our cameras have gotten better, the sizes of our photos and videos have gotten higher, and the software updates have gotten bigger too. Now with AI coming to our devices, it really just means we have less space to work with. So what can we do about it? Our personal tech columnist, Nicole Nguyen has a few suggestions. Okay, Nicole, let's talk about ways to manage the space hogs. What are some of your top tips?

[Nicole Nguyen]

So this is not necessarily a tip, but it's something that you can do which is just throw money at the problem and buy a new phone and pay 100 or $200 more for the next tier. 128 gigabytes is the base model, but I don't think that's enough for most people who have been taking photos for many, many years. 512 is the next step and that's probably the sweet spot for most people. My first primary tip is to go to the settings app. You go to general and then iPhone storage and it gives you a really nice graph of what's taking up a lot of space on your phone. You can also scroll down to see recommendations so you can review super large attachments that are in messages, which is fantastic low hanging fruit because the photos that are sent in messages probably live elsewhere in your camera roll or they're backed up somewhere else. So you can definitely delete those and also a list of apps in the of the space that they take. And that allows you to either dig into that app to see if you can compress some of those files or delete them or from that settings page. You can tap on the app name, say it's podcasts, and delete offenders right from that page.

[Bell Lin]

But no one's deleting the tech news briefing podcast, right?

[Nicole Nguyen]

No, you can delete episodes you've already listened to.

[Bell Lin]

Okay, that's okay with us. So once you've identified the apps that are the biggest culprits, the attachments, the files, what else can you do after that?

[Nicole Nguyen]

Photos is going to be a huge problem for a lot of people. And this plan that I'm about to lay out may seem like the nuclear option, because how dare you take off all the photos on my phone. But it's where people need to be if they want to reset what's happening in their digital lives and start afresh. What I recommend is not using icloud photos to backup your digital library. And this is because of a few complicated reasons. One is that if you delete a photo from your camera roll from your photo library on your phone, it also deletes that photo from the cloud. I recommend instead using Google Photos, which has great search and it also has this magical free up space button that deletes the local copy once it's backed up to Google. You do need to pay for extra Google photo storage beyond the 15 gigabytes, and that starts at $30 a year for 200 gigabytes. Another option is Amazon Photos, which does come with Amazon prime membership. You get unlimited full resolution photo storage, but you do not get unlimited video storage. So you do have to pay up for that.

[Bell Lin]

These are all great tips, but do you have any hacks? And if so, tell us what your favorite iPhone storage hack is.

[Nicole Nguyen]

These aren't really hacks, but they are very easy to turn on. Settings that can make a big difference. One is called high efficiency, and you'll find this in the Settings app under Camera. And what high efficiency does is it compresses the photo and video sizes of the media that you capture. Another one is to auto delete messages in your message history images because they're sent at full resolution. When you send them through imessage, it takes up a ton of space because it's an extra copy that also lives in messages. And you can also turn on another setting called offload unused apps, which basically just uninstalls forgotten apps on your phone.

[Bell Lin]

That was our personal tech columnist, Nicole Nguyen. Coming up, it's Google versus OpenAI. But which chatbot will come out on top? We'll find out why Google is fighting hard for the crown. That's after the break.

[Oracle Representative]

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[Bell Lin]

Google is shooting for the stars with a new goal. According to our reporting, CEO Sundar Pichai recently told Google employees that he wants its Gemini chatbot to hit 500 million users by the end of this year. But Google's goal might not be as much of a moonshot as it sounds. For more on Google's ambitions, we're joined by our reporter Miles Krupa. So, Miles, 500 million users sounds like an ambitious target, right?

[Miles Krupa]

Yeah, it is a lot. In some ways, it's not a lot when you think About Google has seven products with more than 2 billion users, so it's only a quarter of that. But you know, these artificial intelligence chatbots are still a very new thing. And for reference, OpenAI has said they have about 300 million weekly users of its chatbots, so Sundar is aiming for something a bit higher than that. But also, it's safe to assume that ChatGPT's user base will also keep growing this year.

[Bell Lin]

And we should note that News Corp. Owner of the Wall Street Journal, has a content licensing partnership with OpenAI. So, Miles, why does Google believe its Gemini Chatbot can surpass the usership of ChatGPT?

[Miles Krupa]

Google has a few advantages in this sort of AI race. We're starting to see them lean into it a little bit. So one of them is they have all these partnerships with mobile phone makers that use Android, including Samsung, Motorola. And that's one way that Google can promote the Gemini Chatbot is through these mobile phones, when you take them out of the box, either having Gemini be the default mobile assistant or even just having it be on the home screen. There are different ways Google can promote the Gemini Chatbot through different deals with these mobile phone manufacturers. And then, of course, Google owns the most popular browser in the world, the most popular search engine. The Google search app is widely used on iPhones. It has all these different surfaces it can use to promote the chatbot.

[Bell Lin]

And what about from a capabilities perspective.

[Miles Krupa]

What we've seen over the past Year is Google doing a pretty good job of catching up to OpenAI on the sort of AI technology frontier, the underlying large language models that power these chatbots. By various measures, Google has reached or even surpassed what OpenAI has put out. There's a popular ranking called Chatbot arena, and Google actually leapfrogged OpenAI on that ranking in December. And so the first thing is that the underlying models are getting better. And then we've seen a few different things in terms of sort of product innovation from Google. With the Gemini Chatbot, they unveiled this new feature called Deep Research that's been getting pretty good early reviews. It basically goes and searches the web for a few minutes and returns a bunch of sources in a kind of research report format. So you're starting to see them figure out on the product front how they can differentiate themselves from ChatGPT.

[Bell Lin]

Why does the Gemini usership or its feature set even matter? And why does it matter for Google for it to become better than ChatGPT?

[Miles Krupa]

You go back to the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, and it was kind of a shock to Google that they hadn't seen in a while. It wasn't making any money. It was still hallucinating quite a lot. But you could see the potential for ChatGPT and these AI chatbots to change the way that people access information online. And Google had been working on similar things for many years, but didn't quite get to the point where they felt they could release it to the public. So what you're seeing now, Even still in 2025, is this continued evolution in how people access information online and the sort of broader question of how that will disrupt Google search. And so Google isn't quite ready to just sort of seed this chatbot market to OpenAI and other competitors. It needs to have a strong presence. It needs to have a strong product, just because who knows how consumer behavior will change over the next five to 10 years.

[Bell Lin]

That was our reporter, Miles Krupa. And that's it for Tech News Briefing. Today's show was produced by Julie Chang with supervising producer Katherine Milsop logging off. I'm Bell Lynn for the Wall Street Journal. We'll sign back in this afternoon with TNB Tech Minute. Thanks for listening, foreign.

[Oracle Representative]

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