Microsoft’s AI chatbot, Bing Chat, previously limited to Microsoft products like the Bing mobile app and Microsoft Edge browser, is now expanding its reach to non-Microsoft browsers. The company confirmed the expansion following reports of users spotting Bing Chat on Google Chrome and Apple’s Safari.
Reportedly, Microsoft’s director of communications Caitlin Roulston said the company is currently flighting access to Bing Chat in Safari and Chrome to select users as part of its testing on other browsers. Once the standard testing procedures are complete, the aim is to expand access to even more users, making the AI chatbot available to a broader set of audiences.
Previously, Bing Chat users could only access the service within Microsoft’s ecosystem, making it inconvenient for those who used other browsers. However, with the recent expansion, users can now access Bing Chat directly from Bing.com or receive pop-up invitations to try out the Bing AI in Chrome from the Windows 10 or 11 taskbar.
Bing Chat’s AI capabilities are powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4 model, similar to ChatGPT, which enhances the chatbot’s ability to engage in more human-like conversations. The expansion to other browsers is a significant step for Microsoft, allowing the company to cater to a broader user base and democratize access to its advanced AI technology.
While the expansion is promising, some users have reported experiencing certain limitations when using Bing Chat on Chrome and Safari compared to its performance on Microsoft Edge. For instance, in Chrome, the chatbot supports only five messages per conversation, whereas Microsoft Edge allows up to 30 messages. Additionally, the character count is limited to 2,000 in Chrome, while Edge supports up to 3,000 characters.
Microsoft has not yet provided detailed information on these differences or confirmed the exact timeline and global availability of the Bing Chat expansion to other browsers.
Alongside the expansion to different browsers, Microsoft has also introduced a native dark theme for Bing Chat, though this feature is still being rolled out and may not be broadly available yet.
Bing Chat has been gradually making its presence felt across various Microsoft products since its launch earlier this year. It has been integrated with Skype and made available on the Bing mobile app and Edge browser for iOS, Android, and desktop platforms. Recently, Microsoft announced a version of Bing Chat for enterprises, complete with business-focused data privacy and governance controls, signaling its commitment to expanding the chatbot’s usage across multiple sectors.
