Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Sissie Hsiao, vice president and head of Google Assistant’s business unit, announced that organizational changes are coming.
- Google is going to reorganize its virtual assistant unit to focus more on Bard.
- A key leader of the team resigns.
It’s no secret that one of Google’s main focuses is this year Bard, the answer to ChatGPT. To further support Bard’s development, the organization enlists the help of its virtual assistant unit.
According to CNBCSissie Hsiao, vice president and leader of Google Assistant‘s business unit, announced in a memo that its virtual assistant team would be going through a restructuring. The reorganization is a move to allow the unit to work heavily on the company’s AI chatbot.
In the memo, Hsiao reveals that Jianchang Mao, vice president of engineering for Google Assistant who reported directly to Hsiao, is leaving the company for personal reasons. He will reportedly be replaced by former vice president of Google’s trade organization, Peeyush Ranjan.
Adding to this shake-up, Amar Subramanya, Google Assistant’s vice president of engineering, is now leading the technical effort for the Bard team. The memo also stated that the person formerly responsible for leading those tech efforts, Trevor Strohman, will continue as “Area Tech Lead” for Bard.
This realignment and the virtual assistant unit’s increased focus on Bard could suggest that the company has plans for Bard and Google Assistant. Leaders may want to integrate Bard into all products where Google Assistant appears, such as Nest smart speakers, Pixel phones, and even Android Auto.