• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, February 25, 2025

Microsoft has quietly been testing a feature for Bing, calling it an AI search mode that will look different than Copilot, yet similar to Google's AI search with summarized results.

The company confirmed in a statement to Windows Latest that what the media news site found is the beginnings of an AI-powered search mode for Bing, but declined to explain further.

The publication turned to an unnamed source familiar with the project who provided more insight into how Bing's "AI Search" could work once it is rolled out.

When Microsoft Copilot is asked when the company began testing this feature, it will return results that describe it as officially rolling out on February 19, 2025. But when clicking on the link that explains the release dates, the words in the exact sequence “Copilot Search” are not on the page.

It makes one question the accuracy of the content sourced through Copilot.

"From a market perspective, Microsoft has not made any significant moves - until now- for a while. Regarding organic search Market Share, as Google dominates at 92%, and Bing is still at 4.5%," said Jim Yu, CEO at BrightEdge.

The reported function is similar, but different, when compared with Bing’s Copilot-powered Deep Search. Reports suggest it has an easier user interface that eliminates the classic links to the web. The searcher also does not leave Bing, according to early reports.

The feature is different from Copilot, as it serves a summary and sources links as well as image and video searches, rather than blue links that have historically allowed those searching for information to click and be transferred through a backlink to another website for information.

It is part of Microsoft’s effort to close the gap between AI and traditional search. Some code like this-- bing.com/copilotsearch?q=addyourqueryhere--has surfaced to show how it works. By replacing the “addyourqueryhere” with a word like “laptop” in the string, it shows what the search feature looks like today.

The news, initially reported by Windows Latest, has led media outlets like 9to5Google to find other instances of this test.

“We found that this is live on our account in the United States, with “Copilot Search” appearing in an overflow menu alongside other search filters. The new interface has also been shown to be available without clicking on this additional tab,” wrote 9to5Google.

MediaPost reached out to Microsoft for comment and will update the story with any new information as it comes in.