Microsoft has recently launched Bing Image Creator, a web-based tool that uses artificial intelligence to generate images based on text inputs. The tool is available inside Bing Chat, Microsoft's new GPT-4 based AI search engine, and also as a stand-alone site. Now the company wants to improve accessibility to Image Creator further and is integrating it into the Edge browser sidebar.
According to Mikhail Parakhin, Microsoft's head of Advertising and Web Services, the idea behind this feature is to allow users to create images and insert them directly into whatever they are editing, such as an email or a document. Parakhin shared a screenshot on Twitter showing how he used Bing Image Creator to generate a “vintage computer” image and placed it inside Outlook.
The feature is currently being tested on Edge sidebar, which is a panel that can be opened from the browser's toolbar and offers quick access to various tools and services, such as collections, history, bookmarks, coupons, and regular Bing Chat.
Parakhin said that if the feature does not get enough engagement, it might be moved behind the plus sign, which opens a menu with more options. Bing Chat and Edge integrate through a copilot AI connection that Microsoft announced in February.
We are trying this new tool on Edge sidebar: Bing Image Creator. The thesis is: generate the image and insert it right into whatever you happen to be editing. We have a pretty high usage bar for the icons there, if engagement is not stellar, we'll move it behind the plus sign. pic.twitter.com/ATRzUjae9y
— Mikhail Parakhin (@MParakhin) April 5, 2023
Image Creator Uses the Multimodal GPT-4 AI
Bing Image Creator is one of Microsoft's latest tools for AI and web services. The tool can create images based on simple words or phrases, such as animals, objects, landscapes, or abstract concepts. However, the tool also has some limitations and restrictions. For example, it refused to make an image based on the word “Bing” when it was first released.
Image Creator launched last month as an image-search accompaniment for Bing Chat. It is powered by OpenAI and Microsoft's DALL-E image processing natural language AI model.
Microsoft is no stranger to using the DALL-E image AI and was instrumental in its development. The company has recently announced its use of DALL-E within Azure OpenAI Service and on Windows 11 through the Microsoft Designer app.
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