Google pays Apple in the billions to keep its search engine as default running on millions of the company’s devices, and according to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, this deal is what keeps competition such as Bing from thriving. In the latest report, the software giant’s chief executive provided a testimonial during the ongoing Google vs. U.S. Department of Justice antitrust trial.

Nadella says that he tries to be optimistic over the fact that OpenAI’s chatbot is integrated with Bing but is uncertain if it will change user’s search habits

Microsoft Bing has seen major improvements, particularly now, with the integration of OpenAI’s chatbot into the search engine, as comparisons have revealed that it delivers superior results compared to Google Bard. Unfortunately, even though Nadella wants to maintain his optimism, a report published in The Wall Street Journal and spotted by MacRumors mentions that the executive’s mind is clouded with doubt regarding AI.

“I worry a lot about that. Even in spite of my enthusiasm that there is a new angle with AI, this vicious cycle that I’m trapped in could become even more vicious because the defaults get reinforced.”

Nadella also states that a user’s habits are unable to change by default and that Google is able to use its unrivaled 90 percent market share to further improve search results. This might explain why Bing and Google Search have varied results for almost the same query. Earlier, Apple was in talks to acquire Bing, but the deal never matured towards materialization, likely because of the ludicrous sum that Google pays annually to keep its search engine as default.

It is unlikely that there will be another conversation between Apple and Microsoft to acquire Bing, especially when the iPhone maker possesses all the tools to make its own search engine. As for Google, there are still a few more weeks for the antitrust trial to start, but there is no word on what the verdict will be, but we will provide routine updates.

News Source: The Wall Street Journal