Character.AI, renowned for its flexible chatbots, has announced a collaboration with Google. The agreement offers Google a non-exclusive license to Character.AI's advanced huge language model technology. This cooperation adds Character.AI's creators, Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Freitas, come full circle. Both previously worked at Google, and Shazeer co-wrote the seminal "Attention Is All You Need" article. However, the AI field has witnessed a talent migration, with many paper co-authors leaving to start their own businesses.

Character.AI will continue to run autonomously under temporary CEO Dominic Perella, ensuring its user base. "Our talented team remains dedicated to building the Character.AI platform and serving our growing community," according to the business.

This acquisition highlights the strong battle for AI talent and technology. In recent months, Microsoft and Amazon have recruited key executives from promising AI firms.

For Google, the alliance represents a renewed commitment on reclaiming its foothold in AI. The publication of OpenAI's ChatGPT raised internal fears about being surpassed, notwithstanding previous breakthroughs. Google has now integrated its AI laboratories into Google DeepMind, which is overseen by AI luminary Demis Hassabis.

"...thrilled to have him back"

"We're thrilled to welcome Shazeer back," a Google official stated. Shazeer will rejoin DeepMind as part of a select team. He expressed enthusiasm at returning and working with Google DeepMind while noting Character.AI achievements: "I'm proud of what we built together." He believes that the Google collaboration will assure Character.Computer vision's "continued success." The financial facts have not been released.

Character.AI was primarily intended to offer a versatile AI platform for generating diverse services. Last year, the creators imagined a future in which everyone might have individualized AI companions.

The software allows users to develop chatbots that impersonate anyone, real or imaginary. Millions of chatbots have been developed, with some becoming popular conversation companions. For example, a bot that impersonates the Genshin Impact character Raiden Shogun has received over 371 million messages.

Character.AI recently expanded its offerings beyond text, launching "Character Calls" for phone chats with chatbots and "Character Voice" for creating personalized voices.

While a return to Google was implausible last year, this alliance marks a new era in the AI race, with established companies and young stars working together to push the field's frontiers.