Imagine being able to analyze 25,000,000 words in a matter of seconds. No– that’s not a typo, and yes—I also couldn’t wrap my head around it. What once seemed like an unfathomable possibility is reality. Google’s NotebookLM has proved once again that there’s an infinite road of potential with Generative AI.
NotebookLM is an AI-powered research and writing assistant that helps users summarize information from provided sources. This means users are in charge of the information that the platform bases its output on. It can handle up to 50 sources with up to 500,000 words each and get this— you can even include your own handwritten notes!
The tool can answer questions via chat, find insights, summarize concepts, and breaks down key points and themes. NotebookLM also has a feature called “Studio” which allows users to create an “Audio Overview,” or an eerily realistic podcast episode based on resources provided. Studio also has a “Notes” section that allows users to quickly generate an FAQ document, a timeline, a briefing document and a study guide. Recently, Google enhanced the audio section to allow users to join in on the podcast conversation as the “hosts” are speaking. This interactive feature allows users to add their personal thoughts or ask questions to the “hosts” directly, steering the conversation in their preferred direction.
While NotebookLM is extremely powerful, its appeal also lies in its user-friendly ability. Using the platform is easy despite its complex LLM backend foundation. With just a few clicks, users can get detailed overviews about their sources. NotebookLM’s Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) machine learning technique allows the model to search uploaded sources for relevant information and helps the AI generate optimal and accurate responses related to one’s specific needs. This makes the output less prone to errors and hallucinations unlike other typical AI models.
Say I wanted to learn about a random topic like “The History Of Bubble Gum” (I’m actually super curious about it, now that I’ve brought it up). To do so, all I’d have to do is create a new Notebook:
Then, I’d find a few sources on my desired topic – whether that’s in the form of an audio file, a YouTube video, a website link, or anything that can be made into a PDF. I decided to upload sources in multiple forms to enhance diversity in my very, very serious research on bubble gum.
After making my uploads, I selected the “Studio” on the right-hand side of the display, where I was able to access built-in features such as “Help Me Create,” “Summary,” “Suggested Questions” for the chatbot function, and of course, “Audio Overview.”
I decided to generate a FAQ, Study Guide, Timeline, Table of Contents, and of course, a podcast (linked below if you’re interested in hearing it).
FAQ:
Study Guide:
Timeline:
Table of Contents:
Podcast:
Listen to the podcast here!
What’s so amazing about this podcast feature is the accuracy of the content and the natural flow of conversation, which you can now tailor in a specified direction of your choosing. Beyond this, the realism and cadence of the voices is—metaphorically speaking— unreal; the “hosts” sound so human-like, occasionally dropping in an “um” here and a “like” there, on top of pauses that make it seem like they’re actually deep in thought. I’ve even heard a few jokes and ended up chuckling along with them.
To me, humor has been understood to be such a human and complex thing. So, it’s a little unnerving to see AI replicate it with such accuracy. Like many others, I’ve been experiencing that “wary-excited” feeling too. However, the more I use this new technology, that excited feeling starts to outweigh that wary feeling more and more.
As a team, we’ve already started testing NotebookLM as one of our internal research methods. When thinking of all the time spend conducting and analyzing research, believe me when we say that we are blown away by NotebookLM’s capabilities.
Today, I wanted to become an expert in bubble gum, and tomorrow, I might want to thoroughly research why Left Twix is better than Right Twix. With this platform, no topic is off limits; the possibilities are endless.
Ayanna Cox
