Microsoft opens up its ChatGPT-powered Bing search engine to the general public; the waiting list is over

The waiting list is finally over. Microsoft finally removes the waiting list for its ChatGPT-powered Bing search engine. The new version of its Bing search engine, which features a chatbot powered in part by an OpenAI large language model, is now open to the general public.

In an announcement on Thursday, Microsoft said it is removing the waiting list that has been in place for the past three months for its revamped Bing search engine. This will allow anyone with a Microsoft account to use the search engine without having to wait.

The new Bing, which was first made public in February, includes a chatbot powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4 language model. This advanced technology is similar to the popular ChatGPT bot developed by the startup. The new Bing search engine comes with a homepage that features new chat capabilities. The launch appeared to be a success. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said last week that Bing had crossed 100 million daily active users.

“We have really good, positive signal from the time we launched,” Divya Kumar, global head of marketing for search and AI at Microsoft, said in an interview. Kumar stated that further information on how to develop for the Bing chatbot will be provided by the company during its Microsoft Build developer conference, commencing on May 23.

In a press event on February 7, the tech giant showcased new AI-powered updates to its Bing search engine and Edge browser, in one of its biggest efforts yet to dominate the search engine space and lead a new wave of technology that helps reshape how people gather information.

“This technology is going to reshape pretty much every software category,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told reporters at the event briefing at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington.

During the event, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman momentarily took the stage to confirm that Microsoft has integrated its GPT-3.5 language technologies to power some of the new software in the Bing search engine to improve its capabilities, which seems similar to OpenAI’s ChatGPT AI.

“I feel like I’ve been waiting for this for 20 years so I’m very happy it’s here,” Altman said.

For example, you can ask the new Bing to plan a trip, and then ask it how much that trip will cost.  According to Microsoft, the new Bing can answer questions with lots of contexts similar to the way ChatGPT does, and also create itineraries for trips. The Bing can also find you a ticket to a Beyonce concert.

For example, you could ask: “Find me tickets to a Beyoncé concert in the United States where I won’t need a jacket at night” The AI-powered Bing also understands that it needs to find someplace with great weather and checks the tour dates, and it cross-checks the weather forecast during those dates.

Below is a video of the major highlights from the Tuesday event.