Kumu and Google Cloud Collaborate To Build AI Tools For Content Creators

Kumu, a Filipino live streaming and entertainment app, is working with Google Cloud to develop AI-powered tools for entertainment, education, and customer service using Google Cloud's Vertex AI platform.

In other words, Kumu and Google Cloud are teaming up to build AI tools that will help people in the Philippines create and consume more engaging content, learn new things more easily, and get better customer service.

On August 23, 2023, at the Google Philippines office in Taguig City, Philippines, I witnessed Kumu and Google Cloud's showcase event for "Crisostomo A.I. Barra", an Al education streamer. This photo features Google Cloud and Kumu team members as well as members of the media.

Kumu has consistently strived to enhance the appeal of Filipino content by leveraging innovative technology. During its early days, the app garnered popularity through the hosting of "Quiz Mo Ko," an original, interactive, and entirely digital game show that allowed users to participate via their mobile phones and have the chance to win prizes instantly. Another significant milestone for Kumu was its collaboration with ABS-CBN's "Pinoy Big Brother" (PBB) reality TV show. Through the Kumu app, viewers had the opportunity to impact the actions of the housemates by sending virtual gifts and even casting votes to save or evict participants. Furthermore, since PBB streams were accessible 24/7 and had a global audience, this partnership significantly contributed to record-breaking figures in terms of the program's reach and viewership. Consequently, it comes as no surprise that, with the rise of generative AI technology, Kumu sought to explore how this technology could be employed to enhance its live content experiences. To do so, they turned to an AI-focused company like Google Cloud.

Generative AI, also known as generative artificial intelligence, involves utilizing AI to produce fresh content across various mediums such as text, images, music, audio, and videos. It harnesses the capabilities of foundational AI models, which are large AI models capable of multitasking and performing various tasks right out of the box, including summarization, question-answering, classification, and more. These foundational models can be easily adapted for specific use cases with minimal training, even when provided with limited example data. The process of generative AI involves a machine learning (ML) model learning patterns and relationships within a dataset of content created by humans, which it then uses to generate new content.

In June 2023, Google Cloud announced the widespread availability of generative AI support within Vertex AI. During Google Cloud Next 23 in August 2023, Google Cloud expanded Vertex AI's capabilities by introducing new models and tools. This expansion aims to empower businesses to effortlessly experiment with foundational models, tailor them to their enterprise data, and seamlessly integrate and deploy them into applications. These applications come equipped with built-in privacy measures, safety features, and responsible AI considerations. For instance, Vertex AI Search and Conversation allows developers with limited ML expertise to create and deploy intelligent enterprise search and chat applications within a matter of hours.

Enterprise-grade generative AI capabilities have the potential to play a pivotal role in enhancing both internal operational efficiency and external customer experiences. By leveraging these capabilities, businesses can offer more personalized, dependable, and innovative products and services to their customers.

During an event held at the Google office in the Philippines, Rexy Dorado, Co-Founder and President of Kumu, presented a live demonstration featuring "Crisostomo A.I. Barra," Kumu's inaugural AI streamer. This AI streamer has the ability to respond to inquiries about Philippine history, extending beyond the content found in "Noli Me Tangere," the novel upon which its character and personality are based. Rexy also provided attendees with a glimpse into other AI avatars in development, including AI game show hosts, fortune tellers, tutors, tour guides, and customer support agents.

Kumu has been an early adopter of Google Cloud's generative AI capabilities for business purposes. They have been actively constructing their AI streamer and other AI avatars using Google Cloud's PaLM 2 for Text and Chat first-party models, Embeddings for text and images, and Generative AI Studio. All of these resources are accessible through the Vertex AI platform.

Following the showcase, a discussion on the future of generative AI and its applications across various industries took place. Rexy was joined by Ellard Capiral, Kumu's VP of Engineering, Angelo Mendez, Kumu's Chief Innovation Officer, and Abhishek Bhagwat, Google Cloud's AI/ML architect. They addressed questions regarding how Kumu's AI products will enhance users' abilities to create creative content, such as providing recommendations on trending topics, coaching users on other community-building features of the Kumu app, or assisting with technical streaming programs like Open Broadcaster Software. Additionally, they explored how this technology can streamline troubleshooting and improve efficiency in searching for telecommunications product FAQs, as well as its potential to boost engagement among students and employees.

The panel also emphasized the importance of moderating AI-powered streams through a combination of importing and reviewing reliable datasets, fine-tuning and rigorously testing the underlying models, and empowering users to report inappropriate content.

Abhishek Bhagwat, Al/ML Architect at Google Cloud, Rexy Dorado, Co-founder and President at Kumu, Angelo Mendez. Chief Innovation Officer at Kumur and Ellard Caoiral VP of Engineering at Kumu served as Panelists during the showcase event.

During the showcase event, Kumu introduced an exciting live stream competition where the victors will have the opportunity to create their own AI avatars, with the support of Google Cloud. Kumu's vision is to ultimately establish a continuous 24/7 live channel featuring a diverse range of AI streamers and personalities.

This partnership between Kumu and Google Cloud aims to inspire more startups and enterprises to embrace the capabilities of generative AI. The goal is to help them understand how this technology can effectively enhance and fortify their businesses.

For companies interested in collaborating with Kumu to develop their own AI avatars or to explore and gain insights into Kumu's AI products, please don't hesitate to contact Ellard Capiral at Kumu via email at ellard@kumu.ph.