Bing’s AI Rebrand Sees Modest Growth in Market Share Despite Microsoft’s Bold Claims

The dawn of 2023 saw Bing raise the curtains on their next act – a new AI-powered search engine, complete with a chat feature. Touted as a leap into a new era of search engine dynamics, the AI-powered Bing promised an engaging experience that rivals Google’s offerings. However, the reality hasn’t quite lived up to these bold forecasts as recent market share data reveals.

Microsoft’s strategic upgrade of Bing, conceived to take a conversational AI approach, initially excited industry observers. The anticipation surrounding its launch was a testament to the technological spectacle it was expected to become. Yet, despite the tech giant’s vigorous PR efforts and public promise, the new face of Bing has witnessed only a modest increase in its market share.

The data reflecting Bing’s U.S. market share in the aftermath of the AI-rebrand tells a clear story. From a share of 6.35% in February, the AI-led change propelled it marginally to 6.47% by July. While Bing did achieve a short-lived peak at 6.61% in March, the improvement pales in contrast to its 2022 average of over 7%.

Internationally, the recrafted Bing has captured an underwhelming 2.90% market share as of July, wavering below last year’s average of 3%. However, Microsoft disputes these figures, arguing that third-party statistical companies overlooked Bing’s chat page visits.

Yusuf Mehdi, Corporate VP at Microsoft, openly contested the figures. Using internal data – largely undisclosed in terms of figures – Mehdi outlined Bing’s progress as meaningful. Despite not offering explicit stats, he emphasized a significant uptick in market share, indicating a chasm in understanding between third parties and Microsoft themselves.

Contrasting its market tussle, the Redmond firm celebrated the reborn Bing’s first six months in a jubilant blog post. Highlighting landmarks like achieving one billion chats and creating 750 million images, Microsoft’s celebratory message showcased the appreciable PR traction the platform has gained. Even so, the celebration did little in terms of unveiling novel insights into Bing’s workings or market performance.

Bing’s journey to reinvent itself using AI hasn’t been an easy road. Earlier reports have detailed Bing’s search engine’s struggles and gradual progress in the world dominated by Google. The tech giant’s significant investment in AI and conversational queries sought to carve a new user engagement pathway, but the lack of significant market share gains post-rebrand indicates a less energetic customer response than anticipated.

As we stand on the precipice of AI taking a more substantial role in our digital lives, the market response to Bing’s repositioning stands as a crucial indicator. The lack of significant growth paints a vivid picture of the challenge Microsoft faces in eroding Google’s dominance. What remains to be seen is how effective the AI-powered search engine will be in transforming Bing’s fortunes in the long run.

The jury is still out on what Bing’s AI-enhanced search can achieve, but one point stands transparent – breaking the stronghold of Google’s dominance is a far tougher task than what was initially perceived.