Despite Bing’s utilization of artificial intelligence (AI) leading to a surge in its usage, Google still maintains the dominant position with the largest market share in internet search by a significant margin.
Google has long been synonymous with search engines, to the extent that it has become a commonly used verb for searching for something online (‘Google it’). Despite multiple rebranding and redesign efforts by Microsoft’s Bing since its inception in 2009, it was only the recent integration of AI that has allowed it to gain traction in the market.
Empowered by OpenAI’s generative AI technology, the new iteration of Bing differentiates itself from ChatGPT (which is also powered by the same technology) by providing natural and straightforward answers to questions. Despite Bing’s monthly active users in the US more than doubling year-over-year and reaching 4.4 million, Microsoft’s search engine only held 3.4% of the global search market by the end of 2024, as reported by Bloomberg using data from analytics firm StatCounter. This marks an increase of less than one percentage point since the integration announcement of ChatGPT.
The bottom line is that despite substantial growth in Bing’s user base, Google still maintains its dominant position in search with a staggering 92% market share. In 2024, Google may further solidify its position with accelerated plans to integrate AI into its search services.
Google plans to incorporate AI
In May 2024, Google introduced an experimental, early version of its renowned search engine, named the “search generative experience” (SGE). Similar to Bing’s offering, it provides conversational responses alongside the traditional list of links that Google users are familiar with. There is no need to use a separate tool, as AI capabilities are being incorporated into the existing search engine.
SGE is still not widely available and was initially accessible to beta testers through manual sign-ups. However, Google has confirmed its intentions to integrate its latest large language model, Gemini, into SGE in 2024.
On Thursday (Jan.18), the search giant announced that Samsung’s new flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S24, will benefit from Gemini, following a joint statement from the two companies.
Featured image: Dall-E
