I think the most important thing about making a great AI is the dataset and collected user data. I am sure that Google is the first in this regard, as they collect everything. They have also made recent policy changes that allow them to collect all publicly available data. Palm 2 is also significantly better than GPT 3.5 or 3, but Bard only needs user reviews and more active users to improve. With that being said, I believe that Google AI, as a totally free AI, will perform better than GPT 4, which is a paid version, in a short amount of time.
've just shared some information about GPT4all (post). Let’s not forget about Open Assistant, which is a great open-source AI. It needs more financial support, as it seems to be having some server issues. However, if they do it right, it could be the future of LLMs.
PS: I recommend using Linux Mint in a virtual machine first before fully switching over. Alternatively, you can try it out using a live USB, which will give you a better idea of what Linux is like.