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If you’re thinking that Microsoft is trying to get you to switch your search engine from Google to Bing, you’re thinking the wrong way. Even if you’re loyal to Google, Microsoft is still finding ways to get into your daily life.
During Microsoft Build 2023, Mashable spoke with Corporate Vice President Yusuf Mehdi, the man behind Bing’s increased features in recent months. Mehdi talked about Microsoft’s plans for generative AI and shed some light on the AI arms race between Microsoft and Google.
Asked if one of Microsoft’s explicit goals is to take on Google for a bigger piece of the search pie, Mehdi said he wouldn’t characterize it that way. Instead, the goal is to address unanswered searches, in other words, when people ask a question but can’t find what they’re looking for. “According to our data, half of the searches go unanswered. That’s a billion a day,” Mehdi said in a video call from the Seattle-based event. “That’s a great opportunity to meet customer needs that aren’t being met.”
Microsoft Bing will connect ChatGPT to the Internet for all users
Mehdi also made it clear that Bing doesn’t have to try to overtake Google in search traffic to be considered a success in his eyes. “If we get one point of market share, that’s $2 billion in revenue. So we don’t have to change the whole world.” [regarding] the search landscape for very successful businesses and growth.
One of the ways Microsoft is doing this is to incorporate Bing into your personal life through your professional life. “When you’re at work and you sign in with your business account, you get access to all this special business data. And when you go home and sign in with your personal account, all your personal stuff is there. Your saved chats are there, and things like that. So we wanted it to work perfectly for you on both,” Mehdi said.
Through Copilot, Microsoft’s generative AI productivity app, Bing Chat leverages your company’s search and data to provide work-related answers. Bing chat history is saved so you can track your browsing journey in Edge. There is now a Bing chat integration with Windows 11, and as of this event, Bing is the default search engine for ChatGPT.
So while you may choose to turn to Google for answers to most of your questions, Microsoft is working to put Bing everywhere you go, like an AI ninja.
