Microsoft Drops Waitlist for Bing Chatbot
Three months after introducing artificial intelligence to its search engine and web browser, Microsoft today opened public access to its AI chatbot on Bing and Edge.
The company initially required people to join a waitlist for access to Bing AI, though in recent weeks, it appeared that people were being admitted without any delay. Now it's officially open to anyone who wants to take it for a spin.
"Today I'm thrilled to share we are moving to the next generation of AI-powered Bing and Edge to transform the largest category of software in the world—search—by greatly expanding the vision and capabilities we think of as your copilot for the web," according to(Opens in a new window) Yusuf Mehdi, Microsoft's corporate VP and consumer chief marketing officer.
The announcement comes with a laundry list of "open preview" updates, including the promise of more visual elements, access to chat history, and an option to share and export. Interested users can have a look at the new features by signing into Bing with a Microsoft account.
Microsoft, which has invested billions in ChatGPT creator OpenAI, rolled out a version of the AI chatbot in February. It promises to better summarize content, offer recommendations, and find answers to complex questions. "It's a new day in search, it's a new paradigm in search, rapid innovation is going to come," Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said at the time.
In its first 90 days, Microsoft's new chat features have helped users with everything from finding the best place to travel for someone with pollen allergies, to organizing a decade's worth of global volcanic activity into a table, the company says.
"We're excited about continuing to make Bing more accessible," Mehdi said, teasing its introduction
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