I paid over $200 for Google AI's new 'Ultra Tier' so you don’t have to

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Google I/O, Google’s annual developer conference, was last week and they threw the kitchen sink at AI.

A lot of it was released in their new “Google AI Ultra” tier, that’s worth a spicy $204 AUD per month (and that’s a promo until August when it becomes $409.99) 

I’ve gone and paid that $204 so I could give you the full breakdown, only to realise most of what I wanted to cover didn’t even need Ultra. What are you gonna do eh?

In the last week alone Google (mainly Google) and OpenAI have dropped a few absolute bombs in AI. So as below I’ve got my Top 3 from Google I/O plus a snapshot of OpenAI’s shiny new acquisition “io” (Yep. Too many IO’s.)

(1) Google Goggles (not their real name, but that's what they should be called).

Like a powered up version of Meta’s collab with Ray-bans, this tech will be stuck in frames from brands like Warby Parker and Kering (parent company of Gucci, Balenciaga etc) - so they won’t make you look like a complete dickhead.

Google announced Android XR Glasses, and they're expected to hit shelves in early 2026. I think these might actually have legs with real world consumers.

Paired to your phone, they’ll have a heads-up-display, microphone, camera and built-in Gemini. This gives you access to everything from live directions, messaging, and real-time language translation. See it here.

WHY IT MATTERS?  

With headgear that doesn’t immediately announce you as a wanker, the main barrier to entry for augmented/extended reality is hurdled. The tech then becomes an entirely new way to consume media and view the world. This impacts everything from education to advertising. Done well, AR is a completely new industry worth billions of dollars.

(2) Google Search is dying. 

Google AI Overviews 2.0 was just automatically switched on as a default . For most (but not all) searches, a Gemini powered AI overview is now the first information visible from a standard Google search.

WHY IT MATTERS? 

This is the beginning of the end for “Search” ads. SEO will evolve into AIO as people are shifting from searching for information to searching for answers. 

Pages of links are obsolete and instead a whole industry will be built around one individual output to a consumer's question.

Given that Search Ads are the biggest chunk of Google's revenue, Google is making this decision to defend against players like OpenAI, not because it wants to.

(3) Sound AND Vision with Veo 3

Look, it’s easier if you just see for yourself.

Google released the latest version of its video generation platform Veo 3. It now generates much higher quality video AND sound, from text prompts alone.

WHY IT MATTERS? 

Doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to realise that anything in the creative production space is in big trouble. In Issue 2, I predicted we’d see “real-time marketing” explode because of products like this.

Many brands won’t need a creative agency, they’ll ideate and produce campaigns on their own without leaving the office. Obviously, Movie and TV production is about to be shaken up too. Bizarrely, I think real-world production will become where only the highest budget, or the very lowest budget content is made. 

Lastly, OpenAI is getting into gadgets.

OpenAI just bought tech hardware startup “io” for approx $6.5Bil USD. Led by Jony Ive, an ex Apple exec responsible for designing the iPhone, io also comes with a full staff of mainly ex Apple employees.

Io x OpenAI instantly gives the makers of ChatGPT street cred for real world devices, and it sounds like they’re going screenless. 

WHY IT MATTERS?

OpenAI is shifting into the next gear, building its own hardware means it's self sufficient. While Google and even Meta have both AI smarts and hardware, Apple has been sitting on its hands doing absolutely nothing when it comes to AI.

Getting the brains behind the iPhone to build new kit for the largest AI platform in the world plus companies like Google/Meta building their own plus Apple doing sweet FA equals the beginning of the end for Tim Cook and co?

Researching this I’ve continued to be spun out by how much AI will impact so many companies and so many industries. Given my background, and by popular request, on Wednesday we’ll cover how AI is impacting the world of Media, Marketing & Advertising.

If you’re interested, subscribe at tokeneffort.io to read it.