Hit Google as Microsoft plans to add ChatGPT to Bing

While it may sound intriguing, there are a number of “buts” surrounding the news, first reported by The informationthat Microsoft plans to add OpenAIs generative AI powered ChatGPT to its Bing search engine instead of just showing link results.

The new feature, aiming for more complete answers to questions, could reportedly launch at the end of March.

Google still performs the vast majority of searches

First of all Google retain an 83% share of the search market in 2022, while Bing can boast only 9% of the search volume. While Microsoft certainly wants to challenge Google, ChatGPT seems unlikely to make a big dent.

In addition, the current revenue model for search relies on link results, so there are questions about how Bing would monetize its ChatGPT feature.

But digital marketing expert Tim Peter pointed out on Twitter that the advantage of Microsoft is that they can subsidize the cost of ChatGPT in Bing through their other revenue streams. “Google essentially makes all of its money from advertising,” he says tweeted. “Without that ad revenue, they’re a much less valuable company.”

Google also leads in LLM innovation

And Google continues to be a leader in large language models (LLMs), added Emad Mostaque, founder of Stability AI, meaning they are a force to be reckoned with when it comes to generative AI innovation.

Still, he added that Google “doesn’t communicate very well to shareholders and the market and is overly cautious here.”

ChatGPT reportedly Google’s ‘code red’

Google was already under pressure in mid-December, then That reports CNBC that in a recent meeting with all employees, employees expressed concern that the company was losing its artificial intelligence (AI) competitive edge given the meteoric rise of ChatGPT.

And the New York Times reported a few days later, ChatGPT is considered a “code red” for Google’s search activity.

For Microsoft, the plans to add ChatGPT to Bing certainly show that this is the case Investment of $1 billion in 2019 in OpenAI is paying off.

ChatGPT suffers from trust issues

But it’s worth reiterating that none of these search dramas address the hidden danger that literally underpins ChatGPT: that its results cannot be fully trusted for searches.

In December, even Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, had to acknowledge the risks of ChatGPT.

“ChatGPT is incredibly limited, but good enough in some things to give a misleading impression of greatness,” he tweeted. “It’s a mistake to rely on it for anything important right now. It’s a taste of progress; we have a lot of work to do on robustness and veracity.