Microsoft's Bing has struggled for years to gain a foothold among search engines. But the company's recent deep dive into AI is breathing new life into it with its AI-powered Bing Chat feature. Often referred to as Bing ChatGPT, the new Bing is actually quite different from its more popular competitor. It uses GPT-4 and performs more as an AI-powered search engine in a conversational format.
Also: ChatGPT vs. Bing Chat: Which AI chatbot should you use?
Unlike ChatGPT, the new Bing has internet access, giving it the ability to provide more up-to-date responses. ChatGPT, in turn, is only trained on data up to the year 2021 thus it cannot provide answers on current events.
What you need: Getting started with the new Bing requires the use of Microsoft Edge and to log into a Microsoft account. When you access Microsoft Bing, you can choose whether to use the search or chat formats.
Open the Microsoft Edge web browser to access Bing. If you don't have it, you can download it for Windows, Mac, and Linux here — it's also available on mobile for Android and iOS.
Once you've got Edge open, go to Bing.com and either click on Chat at the top of the screen or, if available, on Try it or Learn more right below the search bar.
If you're not logged into your account, you'll be prompted to do so when you go try Bing in chat mode. A Microsoft account could be an outlook.com or hotmail.com email address and password, or the login information you use for Microsoft services like Office, OneDrive, or Xbox.
You can create an account using any email address, Gmail and Yahoo! included.
From the search options below the search bar, click on Chat to access the new AI-powered Bing Chat.
Microsoft's AI-powered Bing Chat is a bit different from the most popular AI chatbot at the moment, ChatGPT. While you ask prompts in a similar fashion, the format for the answers and conversation style is different. Here is what you can do while using Bing Chat:
At this point, you can begin telling Bing your prompts and questions in the text area on the chat window and hit enter to submit them.
The biggest difference Bing Chat and other AI chatbots have when compared to a search engine is the conversational tone in how the search results are rendered. Intelligently formatting search results into an answer to a specific question makes it easier for anyone looking to find out something over the internet.
Also: I tried Bing's AI chatbot, and it solved my biggest problems with ChatGPT
Beyond search engine capabilities, Bing Chat is a full-fledged AI chatbot and can do many of the things others can, like ChatGPT. You can now use Microsoft Bing to generate text like an essay or write poems, to write code much like ZDNET has done with ChatGPT, ask it complex questions and hold a conversation with follow-up questions.
Bing does not use ChatGPT, but it does use GPT-4 in the formulation of its answers, with the exception of the visual input feature. The new Bing is the only way to use GPT-4 for free at this time and Microsoft claims the integration with latest language model makes Bing more powerful and accurate than ChatGPT.
Also: Want to experience GPT-4? Just use Bing Chat
Many users prefer one or the other: In my experience, I've noticed Bing Chat can sometimes be a bit slow to respond or miss some prompts, but that's typically remedied by asking a follow-up question like, “Did you search for that?”. That being said, I find the new Bing offers users more control over their experience and a more intuitive UI.
The GPT 3.5 version of OpenAI's language model is what powers ChatGPT. When GPT-4 becomes widely available through an updated version of ChatGPT, it will be through OpenAI's subscription service, ChatGPT Plus, which costs $20 a month.
Microsoft just announced an Image Creator from Microsoft Bing. Once again availing itself with OpenAI technology, Microsoft is using DALL-E, an artificially-intelligent image generator. This is more of a tool for Microsoft Edge within Bing, as users are able to give Bing a prompt to create images within an existing chat, as opposed to going to a separate website.
Also: The 5 best AI art generators of 2023
Just like ChatGPT and other large language models, the new AI-powered Bing Chat is prone to giving out misinformation. Most of what the new Bing offers as answers are drawn from online sources, and we know we can't believe everything we read on the internet. Similarly, when you use the new Bing in chat mode, it can generate nonsensical answers that are unrelated to the original question.
Bing Chat is not only free, it's also the best way to preview GPT-4 for free right now. You can use the new Bing to ask questions, get help with a problem, or seek inspiration, but you are limited to 15 questions per interaction and 150 conversations a day.
Also: The best AI chatbots: ChatGPT and other fun alternatives to try
Microsoft defaults to clearing your conversations when you click the New Topic button, so your conversations aren't saved beyond the duration of each. However, search history is saved in your account, depending on your settings.
At the time of this publication, if Edge users log into their account, they should be able to access Microsoft's new AI-powered Bing right away.
If you have the Edge browser on your mobile device, you can use the new AI-powered Bing search in chat mode, much like you would in your computer. There's also the option of skipping the Edge browser and downloading the Microsoft Bing app from your device's app store. This app is a straight line to the Bing AI chatbot, with the benefit of not having to access a website when you want to use it.
Also: Your Microsoft apps are getting an AI revamp. Here's what we know
Both the Microsoft Bing app and the Edge browser support voice dictation on mobile so you can ask your questions without even typing them in.