After monopolizing the data for the Bing chatbot, Microsoft continues to deploy new AI (artificial intelligence) features, allowing users to choose to view ads directly in the reply section.
With the unexpected success of Bing, Microsoft Corporation Vice President Yusuf Mehdi said the company is exploring the insertion of ads in chat experiences with AI.
Caitlin Roulston, Microsoft communications director, told The Verge: “Yes, ads will show up in Bing, specifically in the chat pane, just like in traditional search results. Since Bing is currently in preview, there may be some changes to the display. We’re still exploring new opportunities for ad experiences and will share more in the near future.”
Microsoft has been experimenting with ads on Bing for some time – most recently in discussion with advertising agencies on February 17. To preview the ad display feature, The Verge illustrated an example from user Debarghya Das shared when asking Bing about cheap Honda cars. After replying, Bing gives citations with a small “Ad” label appearing. Clicking this link, Bing will take the user directly to the sponsor’s website
Microsoft is still working on the ad insertion feature, so some users may not receive promotional labels for replies from Bing Chat.
However, users still do not know the volume of ads to display or how Microsoft inserts ads to distinguish between the advertising information and the source cited in the answer. In the Bing blog post, Mehdi only said that the company wants to share ad revenue with partners that contribute content to AI chats. But Microsoft has yet to address the issue of the chatbot harmonization the company intends to achieve, between ad-free and ad-free when Bing responds. And regardless of the harmony that Microsoft is aiming for, many users say that the display of ads raises an inherent skepticism: whether to trust AI’s answers or not
