In a move that hasn’t surprised anybody, Google this week announced its own ChatGPT style platform, and how AI will be integrated into search. Hot on their heels, Microsoft today announced the integration of ChatGPT into Bing.
The Race To Bring AI To Seach
Last month, I wrote about Microsoft planning to integrate ChatGPT into their search engine, Bing and how this could potentially be worrying for Google. Google hold most of the market share when it comes to search so will obviously be interested in keeping up with Microsoft developments to ensure it retains its position as the market leader.
Google has been working on their own AI for years but previously said it had no intention of launching it to the public yet, as there were still concerns about controlling the information AI could provide. However, on February 2nd, Sundar Pichai did say that Google was working on features similar to ChatGPT that users would be able to interact with.
Following that, Google then announced this week, that web users would soon see the search giant’s answer to ChatGPT. They will be launching their own standalone AI chatbot programme, and the technology will also be integrated into Google search. The announcement also revealed their service will be called Bard.
Can’t keep up? I know, it’s dizzying but it feels as though ChatGPT have really shaken up a lot of discussion about search, how we interact with the internet, and the future of AI.
In response to Google announcing Bard, Microsoft has now confirmed today, that they will indeed be bringing AI technology to Bing, via OpenAi, the company behind ChatGPT.
There is no word when the new Bing will be widely available, but you can try it out now to see what it looks like. When I asked one of the suggested questions: “I need to throw a dinner party for 6 people who are vegetarian. Can you suggest a 3-course menu with a chocolate dessert?” And this is how the result is displayed:
Pretty cool!
Google is also giving a peak at what Bard will look like in action, both as a standalone system and in search in their announcement blog.
Search Hasn’t Changed In 20 Years
Both developments are a huge leap forward in technology, how everyone will use search, and potentially how SEOs will do our jobs in the future.
As a customer, I’m excited about the improvements we will see in search – customer experience is, after all, the driving force behind both developments.
Microsoft made their announcement about integrating AI into search at a conference where CEO Satya Nadella made some interesting comments, saying that search hasn’t really changed much over the last 20 years. And when you think about it…it hasn’t. We type a couple of keywords into a search engine and then usually pick the most appropriate-looking website to provide an answer.
AI will give us the ability to receive answers to complex, multi-layered questions, ask follow-up questions, and engage with search in a much more conversational and ultimately, meaningful way.
