Canada excluded from Google's expansion of AI chatbot Bard

CTV National News: Calls to investigate Meta News publishers call for Meta to be investigated after blocking news on digital platforms. Annie Bergeron-Oliver reports.

Canada has been left out of a recent expansion of Google's artificial intelligence-powered chatbot known as Bard as the big tech giant continues its fight with the federal government over the Online News Act.

Writing in a blog post Thursday, members of the Bard team said the chatbot has undergone its "biggest expansion to date," becoming "available in most of the world, and in the most widely spoken languages."

Google's parent company Alphabet announced in February that it would open Bard to test users for feedback, followed by a public release.

The company now says its ChatGPT competitor can be used in more than 40 languages and in countries such as Brazil and across Europe.

"As part of our bold and responsible approach to AI, we've proactively engaged with experts, policymakers and privacy regulators on this expansion," the blog post said.

"And as we bring Bard to more regions and languages over time, we'll continue to use our AI Principles as a guide, incorporate user feedback, and take steps to protect people's privacy and data."

But of the more than 230 countries and territories that Bard is currently available in, Canada is not among them.

Also not on the list are countries such as China, Russia, Belarus, Iran, North Korea, Afghanistan and Cuba.

In an email statement Friday, a Google spokesperson did not directly answer a question from CTVNews.ca about whether the decision to exclude Canada is related to the ongoing disputes over the Online News Act.

"As we continue to build Bard responsibly, we're expanding access to more countries and regions in multiple languages," the spokesperson said.

"We're committed to being good partners as we work through regulatory uncertainty in Canada, and we're enthusiastic about bringing Bard's generative AI potential to Canadians soon."

Google and Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, have said they would block news links from their platforms over the federal government's Online News Act, formerly known as Bill C-18.

The bill, which received royal assent in June, would force companies such as Google and Meta to negotiate compensation deals with media outlets.

Supporters of the law say it is meant to level the playing field when it comes to online advertising.

Both Alphabet and Meta make most of their revenue through advertising, which news media companies also have traditionally relied on.

The federal Heritage Department also say Google and Facebook took 80 per cent of the $9.7 billion in online advertising revenue generated in 2020. Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez sponsored the Online News Act.

At the time of Bill C-18's passage, Meta confirmed it would follow through on its previous position to end news availability on Facebook and Instagram for Canadian users.

The company also said it would do so before the Online News Act takes effect, which is expected to be about six months from when it passed.

Google confirmed in June that it would remove Canadian news from its platforms and end existing deals with local publishers.

Both companies have already performed tests to block news for some Canadian users.

The federal government, as well as the Quebec government and some media companies, have responded by suspending advertising on Facebook and Instagram.

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Bell Media, which owns CTV News, has also suspended all its advertising on Meta's platforms.

"Like many Canadians, we are concerned about the consequences Meta's decision to block links from Canadian news organizations will have on Canadians, and all those who reside or work here, all of whom should be able to rely on independent and trusted news from Canadian sources," said Bell Media president Wade Oosterman in a written statement.

With files from The Canadian Press and Reuters