“Microsoft Takes Aim at Google with Launch of Bing Edge Browser Powered by ChatGPT”
REDMOND, WASHINGTON — Microsoft (MSFT) unleashed its latest salvo against rival Google (GOOG, GOOGL) on Tuesday, unveiling a new version of its Bing search engine that runs on a more powerful version of OpenAI’s popular ChatGPT natural AI technology .
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella unveiled the latest version of Bing and an updated version of its Edge web browser at an event at Microsoft headquarters, where he explained how AI will transform the search engine.
“It’s a new day for searching. It’s a new paradigm for searching,” Nadella said. “Fast innovation will come. Today starts a race in terms of what you can expect. We will be moving fast. For us, we want to bring new things out every day. And most importantly, we want to have lots of fun innovating in the quest .”
Microsoft argues that search hasn’t changed much in the 20 years since companies started using algorithmic search engines. To that end, Microsoft is adding generative AI to the equation, which it claims makes it more powerful than any of its competitors.
The new Bing complete with AI technology from OpenAI. (Image: Microsoft)
The company uses the so-called Prometheus model. The idea is to accomplish a number of things, including improving the relevance of answers, annotating search answers with specific web links and citations, providing users with more up-to-date information, and improving the security of answers.
In the new Bing, users will see standard web links on the left and AI-powered answers, specifically pulled out to answer questions, on the right.
Microsoft provided an example of how people in the store might want to look for a love seat and know if it would fit in their car. Bing will take the dimensions of the sofa and your car to determine whether or not to bring it home. The software will also tell if it fits just right if it’s not sure.
In another example, when searching for the pros and cons of the top three selling pet vacuums from various items on the web, Bing looks on the right side of the screen, something users currently have to navigate by visiting multiple websites.
And if you’re looking for an egg substitute for a recipe, Bing can provide several examples of options and then say what it’s actually doing to the recipe, e.g. B. make a cake fluffy.
Bing will also use a new chat experience. Suppose you are looking for a 65 inch TV. The answers on the right side of the screen offer a range of TVs and some highlights. You can then refine the query by clicking on the available chat box and asking which of the TVs listed is best for gaming.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, speaks at Microsoft’s Bing and Edge AI event. (Image: Dan Howley/Yahoo Finance)
It then pulls that information from the internet and provides information about which televisions offer certain gaming features. You can then break it down further to ask which are best for a lower budget.
Finally, Microsoft showed how Bing can be used to put together an itinerary for a five-day trip to Mexico City. Not only was the search engine able to provide a full itinerary – they broke it down and asked them to convert the trip into a three-day version.
As for the Edge browser, Microsoft is adding a dedicated Bing button that brings the power of the search engine to the browser.
“I think this is the beginning of a whole new era,” said Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, during the event. “[Microsoft and OpenAI] share a deep sense of responsibility to ensure AI is used safely.”
Microsoft gives good weight to its investment in AI. Leading up to the presentation, Nadella equated the technology and its commercial opportunity with the founding of Microsoft.
“I think this technology will transform pretty much every category of software,” he said.
Last month, Microsoft announced it was making a multi-year, billion-dollar investment in OpenAI with the goal of adding the company’s capabilities to Microsoft’s offerings. OpenAI ChatGPT’s popularity exploded when it was released in November 2022.
The platform allows users to request things like “Write me a poem about a flying horse” and provide replies that sound like they were written by a human. The software is called generative AI because it formulates unique responses based on the massive amounts of data it was trained on.
On Monday, likely in anticipation of Microsoft’s announcement, Google unveiled its own natural language generative AI capabilities. The software, dubbed Bard, aims to provide users with AI-powered answers to their questions that sound like they were written by someone else.
Microsoft is in a race to beat Google to become Silicon Valley’s AI king.
Google didn’t stop there. The company also announced that generative AI capabilities will be available on its search platform in the coming weeks.
Companies are competing to be first in generative AI, which could give them a huge edge when it comes to wooing bot average consumers and business customers. By making their software more accessible, companies like Microsoft and Google can give their customers easier-to-understand answers to their questions, whether it’s how far the moon is from Earth or where specific data is stored on their corporate servers.
The AI wars only get hotter from here.
Sign up for the Yahoo Finance tech newsletter
More from Dan
Do you have a tip? Email Daniel Howley at [email protected] Follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley.
Click here for the latest earnings reports and analysis, earnings whispers and expectations, and corporate earnings news
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
Download the Yahoo Finance App for Apple or Android
Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, flipboard, LinkedInAnd youtube
Don’t miss interesting posts on Famousbio
