Microsoft is making a big AI play with its revamped Bing search engine and Edge web browser. Both of these are powered by what appears to be exclusive access to the successor to OpenAI’s popular ChatGPT large-scale language model.
The new AI has not yet been named and is only described in a blog post as follows:
…a new next-generation OpenAI large-scale language model that is more powerful than ChatGPT and tailored specifically for search. It incorporates significant learnings and advancements from ChatGPT and GPT-3.5, making it even faster, more accurate, and more capable.
Multiple executives at a Microsoft event repeated the phrase “customized for search”, so it should be a agreed upon language that doesn’t overcommit the model’s capabilities in any way. They called it a “new large-scale language model,” but I’m not sure how much it advanced from OpenAI’s previous model. It was speculated that it might be GPT-4, but that term is no longer used. I asked OpenAI for details. I will update if I get a reply.
One of the drawbacks of such large models is the enormous computational power required to run them. As such, many potential ChatGPT users will have to wait a few minutes before starting a session. It makes sense that Microsoft is focused on scaling. Especially since computing and server billing is guaranteed.
Unlike ChatGPT and other GPT models, AI-powered Bing is accessed directly from the regular search interface and wrapped in Prometheus, a secure system created by Microsoft. An ominous name indeed. Prometheus was a god of wisdom and cunning, but he was also famous for being chained to a rock with giant birds pecking at his guts forever, ending in endless torture. Let’s hope it doesn’t end in
Image credit: microsoft
Prometheus is part of the model’s safety and control layer acting as a sanitizer and filter, watching for apparently inappropriate or inaccurate results. However, relevant data such as location, context, and updates are also captured to customize or improve the inputs and outputs from the core model.
The next-generation model was also applied to Bing’s search ranking index, which “represented the biggest leap in relevance in 20 years.” It takes strength to admit it!
We’ll share more details about the new Bing and the AI models that power it after today’s event at Microsoft headquarters.
