Canada remains excluded from Google’s deployment of its AI-based chatbot, Bard, as the company continues its dispute with the federal government over the Online News Act. The announcement of Bard’s expansion to 230 countries and territories by Google on July 13 excluded Canada, as well as Russia, China, and North Korea.
When questioned about the exclusion of Canada, a Google spokesperson told The Epoch Times that they are working to expand access to Bard and are committed to being good partners in Canada despite the regulatory uncertainty. They expressed enthusiasm about bringing Bard’s generative AI potential to Canadians in the near future.
Originally launched in March, Bard was initially only available in the United States and the United Kingdom. In June, the European Union launch was delayed due to Google’s failure to address privacy concerns raised by the Irish Data Protection Commission. However, these concerns have since been resolved, allowing for the launch of Bard in other European countries.
Bard, along with other AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Microsoft Bing, enables users to engage with them in a conversational manner and receive informative responses. These chatbots are capable of writing essays, providing vacation plans, sharing recipes, and more.
The recent expansion of Bard’s availability coincides with a significant update that introduces new features. Users can now listen to responses aloud, customize the style of the chatbot’s responses, pin and rename conversations, and use images as prompts.
The exclusion of Canada from Bard’s launch and expansion is tied to the Online News Act, specifically Bill C-18. This legislation mandates that tech giants negotiate agreements with and pay Canadian media for the content they link to on their platforms. In response to this regulatory requirement, Google announced on June 29 that it would remove links to Canadian news from its search, news, and discover products.
Google cited the government’s failure to provide assurances regarding the resolution of structural issues in the legislation as the reason for this decision. Additionally, Meta, the parent company of Facebook, stated that Canadians would lose access to news on its social media platforms due to the Online News Act.
The federal government responded by withdrawing its annual advertising expenditure of $10 million from Meta’s platforms, Facebook and Instagram. Quebecor, Bell Media, Torstar Corp., Cogeco, and Postmedia Network Canada Corp, all prominent news and telecommunications businesses, followed suit shortly after.
As the conflict between Google and the Canadian government continues, the availability of Bard remains uncertain in Canada. The exclusion reflects the ongoing challenges posed by regulatory issues and highlights the importance of resolving these concerns to ensure equitable access to AI technology for Canadians.
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