Adobe on Tuesday unveiled its new “AI-powered conversational engine” that can answer questions about documents and generate summaries or insights from them. It can even create citations.
Adobe’s “AI Assistant,” currently available in beta, employs artificial intelligence and machine learning models to understand the content and structure of documents. It is compatible with various types of documents, including PDF, Word, and PowerPoint files.
“Generative AI offers the promise of more intelligent document experiences by transforming the information inside PDFs into actionable, knowledge and professional-looking content,” Abhigyan Modi, the senior vice president of Adobe’s Document Cloud, said.
The AI Assistant is now available to Acrobat Standard and Pro (Individual and Teams) users in English and is coming to Reader desktop customers over the next few weeks — at no additional cost. Once the beta phase ends, users will need an add-on subscription to access it.
“Today’s announcement signals the beginning of Adobe’s vision to leverage generative AI to reimagine the value of digital documents,” Adobe said in its press release.
‘Unlocking New Value’ From Documents
Building on the success of Acrobat’s “Liquid Mode,” Adobe’s new AI Assistant has a range of capabilities designed to improve productivity. It can generate concise summaries, answer questions through a conversational interface, and create citations.
Looking ahead, Adobe plans to introduce more sophisticated AI-powered features like AI-assisted authoring, editing, formatting, and enhanced collaboration tools.
“PDF is the de facto standard for the world’s most important documents and the capabilities introduced today are just the beginning of the value AI Assistant will deliver through Reader and Acrobat applications and services,” Modi said.
The AI Assistant is expected to enhance productivity for a wide range of users, from project managers and sales teams to students and social media marketers.
The Privacy Risks of Using Generative AI
Adobe’s AI Assistant will be a much-welcome addition to workplaces and schools. However, the new AI tool will also raise eyebrows among privacy-conscious users, considering Adobe’s history of privacy and cybersecurity challenges. These concerns are not without merit, as the AI Assistant will have access to highly confidential documents.
While Adobe says it will not collect or store any data to train its AI Assistant without users’ consent, it’s important to be cautious of the information you share with the chatbot. We strongly advise against sharing documents with sensitive personal information or proprietary intellectual property.
It’s important to review and understand the privacy settings and consent options available to protect your data effectively when using AI Assistant and other chatbots. Read our guide to the privacy risks of chatbots for more actionable tips.
AI Assistant is not Adobe’s first foray into AI integration. The company has incorporated Adobe Sensei across its extensive software suite, bringing intelligent enhancements to its products. In Photoshop, Sensei enables advanced tools like Content-Aware Fill for seamless editing.
Similarly, Adobe After Effects uses AI technology for features like Content-Aware Fill for video, streamlining the creation of complex visual effects. Adobe Premiere Pro also benefits from Sensei’s AI capabilities.
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