A few months ago, Google launched a new feature called Audio Overviews in its NotebookLM note-taking app. This feature generates a podcast with AI virtual hosts based on the information users have shared with the app. Now, NotebookLM is enhancing this feature by allowing users to interact with the AI podcast hosts.
The purpose of Audio Overviews and the AI hosts is to provide users with a novel way to digest and understand the information in the documents they have uploaded to the app, such as course readings or legal briefs.
With this new interactive feature, users can engage in conversations with the AI hosts, asking them for more details or for different explanations of concepts. According to a blog post by Google, the experience is akin to having a personal tutor who listens and responds based on the knowledge from the provided sources.
To use this feature, users need to create a new Audio Overview, tap the “Interactive mode (BETA)” button, and then hit play. When they want to ask a question, they can tap “Join,” and a host will prompt them to speak.
Google emphasizes that this is an experimental feature and is currently only available with new Audio Overviews. The company also notes that the AI hosts may occasionally “pause awkwardly before responding” and may sometimes provide inaccurate answers, as it is still in the testing phase.
Since the launch of Audio Overviews in September, users have generated more than 350 years’ worth of content, according to Google.
In addition to the new interactive feature, NotebookLM is receiving a redesign that organizes the app’s tools into three panels: Sources, Chat, and Studio. Furthermore, Google is introducing a premium version of the app for enterprises, called “NotebookLM Plus,” which offers additional benefits.
