Microsoft Bing Chat set to launch image recognition very soon

Much to the delight of Windows 11 users, Microsoft Bing AI has added a useful new feature in the form of image recognition support. To those unaware, Microsoft was one of the early investors in OpenAI's ChatGPT.

The word on the street is that Microsoft ignored the AI company's warning and launched an unfinished Bing chat service. However, this hasn't stopped the American technology corporation from integrating ChatGPT's service into some of its products.

For instance, Microsoft integrated Bing's AI into the Start news aggregator app, Skype telecommunications app, and Swiftkey virtual keyboard app. The company is now prepping to update the Bing Chat desktop with support for image recognition or OCR (Optical Character Recognition).

ChatGPT integration extends to Microsoft's Bing Chat

The folks at Windows Latest claim the image recognition feature uses OpenAI's ChatGPT-4 vision model to detect the objects in an image. Aside from this, the feature uses real-life examples to thoroughly explain the image. On the downside, this Bing Chat vision feature will initially be available only to select users worldwide, according to a Neowin report.

These users will be able to upload an image as a query rather than typing text. Bing Chat will not only identify the image but also provide information about it. To recap, Microsoft removed the Bing Chat waitlist last month. However, it was available only to those who use the Edge browser or the Bing mobile app.

Some people who had the chance to use Bing Vision took to Twitter to share their experiences. A Twitter user revealed that the chatbot was able to identify an Egyptian temple from a photo. This is an ideal example of how we might be able to use Bing Vision in the future.

Another user uploaded a scan of a maths equation on the chatbot. Notably, Bing Chat's image feature correctly identified it as the Schrodinger equation. Aside from this, the AI was able to identify and analyse a humorous cartoon. Regrettably, only a niche set of users can access the image recognition feature right now.

Microsoft's head of advertising and web services, Mikhail Parakhin told Tech Radar that it is available to just over 10 per cent of the user base. So, when will Bing Vision likely be available to everyone?

Is Bing Vision coming to everyone soon?

It is worth noting that the feature is only available on personal computers at this point. In other words, Bing Vision isn't available on mobile devices. Nevertheless, this feature can help you with all your image-based queries.

For example, if you come across a picture of a beautiful town, mountain, or lake and wonder where it is, simply upload the image on Bing and it will provide details about the location. On top of that, the AI might even be able to tell you how you can plan a trip there.

According to Parakhin, the feature is set to roll out more broadly in a few weeks, and it will include mobile users as well. Meanwhile, Microsoft is leaving no stone unturned in a bid to expand the capabilities of Bing AI. In line with this, the company recently simplified the process of interacting with Bing's AI chatbot in Windows 11.

Notably, you can now ask Bing AI questions with your voice on your desktop PC. According to a Windows Central report, only Mandarin, German, French, Japanese, and English are supported at the moment. Unlike the Bing Vision feature, voice input is already available on the mobile version of Bing Chat.

Also, the company made its Bing AI chatbot better for iPhone users earlier this month. Apparently, the tech giant introduced a Bing Chat widget that users can easily add to the Home screen. So, users can now start a session with the AI chatbot with just a simple tap. This is a pretty useful ability if you are a regular user of Bing AI on an iOS device like iPhone.