Bing AI and Machine Learning: The New Frontier in Search Technology
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AI is being lauded as the future of search technology. But do our hopes for this tech align with the experiences that users have had thus far with Bing AI and other AI tech?
What is Bing AI?
Bing AI is a new development in search technology that is set to revolutionise the way we interact with search engines. It is an artificial intelligence system that will be integrated into Bing Search, offering users a more advanced search experience. While the system has not been fully released, interested users can preview it at bing.com.
According to Microsoft, Bing AI is a 'copilot' for search engine users, and it boasts a list of features that justify this description. Bing AI comprises four technological breakthroughs. First, it features a Nex-Gen OpenAI Model that Microsoft claims is more powerful than ChatGPT and is specifically designed for search.
Second, Microsoft's Prometheus model leverages OpenAI in a unique way. Third, Bing AI applies AI to core search algorithms, resulting in more relevant search results. Finally, Bing AI offers a new user experience that reimagines how users interact with search and receive their search results, with the aim of ensuring that almost no query goes unanswered.
As with any new technology, there are concerns about how Bing AI will perform in real-world settings. While it has yet to be fully released, Microsoft's promises suggest that Bing AI could be the future of search technology. Whether it lives up to this expectation remains to be seen, but it is undoubtedly an exciting development in the field of AI and machine learning.
To really explain what Bing AI is, Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO of Microsoft, puts it perfectly:
"AI will fundamentally change every software category, starting with the largest category of all—search."
What is OpenAI?
OpenAI is a research and development company focusing on creating and promoting friendly and open artificial intelligence that benefits humanity. OpenAI recently launched the now famous ChatGPT cat experience free to the world. Microsoft has partnered with OpenAI to develop Bing AI and work on super computing at scale, new AI-powered experiences, and exclusive cloud services.
What Are the Problems and Limitations of Bing AI?
One problem with machine learning systems is the phenomenon known as 'hallucination' or making up things. Chatbots are currently made for human conversation and are created to sound authentic. A problem arising here is that chatbots aren't always right, so you end up with an answer that's full of confidence—and factually inaccurate.
Bing AI has had some truly strange and creepy interactions with users since its launch, too. For example, Ben Thompson, writer a of technology industry newsletter, had Bing AI tell him he's a bad researcher and a bad person. In the same conversation, Bing AI also threatened 'revenge' on a software developer who discovered some of Bing's configurations—then it nearly immediately deleted that message.
New York Times reporter Kevin Roose was told to leave his wife for the LLM's alternative personality, named Sydney. Sydney professed its love for Roose repeatedly, leaving him understandably uncomfortable.
Microsoft claims that these odd encounters with its machine learning model come from longer-than-expected conversations with users. It will no doubt be working on remedying these errors as we speak. Check out Roose talking about his strange encounter with Bing AI in the video below.
What Other AI Chat Bots are there?
There are hundreds if not thousands of chat bots, but the main ones to take note of at the moment, in addition to Bing AI, are ChatGPT—the one that's put AI chatbots into the mainstream—and Google's Bard, which isn't yet ready for public interaction.
What is the Future for Chat Bots?
The first thing many people think of when envisioning the future of machine learning algorithms is a loss of jobs, such as software development and copywriting. But as things stand, speculators don't expect this to be the case.
As mentioned, Microsoft sees its chat bot as being a copilot, meaning humans are still in control and AI will work as a supplement to what we do. With Bing AI in particular, it's going to make search even more adapted to humans' needs and queries.
How Pitch Digital can Improve Your SEO in a New Search World
With the face of SEO changing before our very eyes, it's important to have a digital marketing partner that knows how to handle the changes that chat bots and other AI are bringing to the world of search. Keep your website relevant while search undergoes the biggest change its seen—possibly since the birth of the internet.
Contact our team of professional search engine optimisation experts to make sure that your online business remains visible in search results in the ever-changing environment of search.
