Google in “panic” mode as Samsung considers switching to Bing

Samsung is reportedly considering making Microsoft’s Bing the default search engine app on its Galaxy devices, switching from Google Search. Unsurprisingly, this has put Google into “panic” mode. The search giant is now scrambling to improve its service as the threat of Bing looms large.

For years, Google has hardly had any competition in the search business, which was worth $162 billion last year. It is the default search engine on Samsung’s Galaxy devices and Apple’s iPhones. The Google app also comes pre-installed on the vast majority of Android devices sold globally. Most people live with what they already have and don’t bother switching to alternatives like Bing or DuckDuckGo. This gave little opportunity for these firms to grow and fight Google.

However, things have taken an unexpected turn in recent months. Microsoft integrated the AI chatbot sensation ChatGPT into Bing in February this year and people immediately started thronging it. In just over a month, Bing saw a 16 percent growth in page visits. Google, on the other hand, declined by one percent during the same period. This must have been a worrying sign for Google but the worst is yet to come.

Samsung is considering switching to Bing, putting Google in “panic” mode

According to The New York Times, Google recently learned that Samsung is considering ditching it in favor of Bing. The Korean firm has kept Google as the default search engine on Galaxy devices for the past 12 years. The growing popularity of the new AI-powered Bing is seen as the reason behind Samsung considering a change. The decision shocked Google employees with some calling it a “wild” move by the world’s biggest smartphone company.

But for Google, this would mean a potential loss of an estimated $3 billion in annual revenue. The company is now hurrying to bring its AI chatbot Bard, which launched publicly less than a month ago, to its search engine. It is also reportedly “racing to build an all-new search engine” to thwart the competition from Microsoft Bing and other rivals. These search engine improvements are in development under a new project titled Magi.

Google has put several designers, engineers, and executives in so-called sprint rooms where they “tweak and test the latest versions” of its new search engine. The company plans to offer a “far more personalized experience” than its current service. The idea is to anticipate users’ needs and give them a better search experience than before. “Not every brainstorm deck or product idea leads to a launch, but as we’ve said before, we’re excited about bringing new AI-powered features to search and will share more details soon,” the report cites Google spokeswoman Lara Levin as saying.

Google is also readying a fresh pitch to Samsung for its “new” search engine. It remains to be seen whether the Korean firm likes the idea or it sides with Microsoft, which has been bringing Bing AI to pretty much all of its mobile products, including the SwiftKey keyboard app. Google’s search engine contract with Apple, which is valued at about $20 billion in annual revenue, is also up for renewal this year. Time will tell if it manages to thwart Bing’s threat and renew the contracts with both Samsung and Apple.