Barry Caldwell 
Samsung Abandons Plans to Replace Google with Bing as Default Search Engine for Smartphones
Samsung, the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer, was reportedly considering replacing Google with Bing as the default search engine for its smartphones. However, recent reports suggest that the company has abandoned this idea and decided to stick with Google. This decision comes as a huge relief for Google, which would have suffered a significant loss had Samsung chosen Bing as its default search engine.
Bing, Microsoft’s search engine, has struggled to gain a foothold in the search engine market since its launch. In 2022, Google dominated the search engine market, representing 96% of mobile users, while Bing held only 1%. Had Samsung chosen Bing as its default search engine, it would have been an unprecedented win for Microsoft’s search engine.
The change would have only affected the default browser app within Samsung smartphones. The company was initially unconcerned that it would affect users much, as most of them don’t prefer the default browser and opt for Google Chrome, which also comes preinstalled in Samsung phones.
Google, an Alphabet-owned company, has been struggling to keep up amid the artificial intelligence revolution that has exploded with the widespread release of generative AI tools in recent months. As OpenAI’s chatbot, ChatGPT, dominates the generative AI craze, other big players, like Microsoft and Google, have been scrambling to compete.
Microsoft injected a large investment into OpenAI months ago, with the goal of incorporating GPT-4, OpenAI’s latest-released large language model, into Bing and other tools. Since then, Bing has gained generative AI capabilities, powered by the largest LLM to be released in combination with internet access. This has given Bing new momentum as a search engine, especially since Google’s own AI chatbot, Bard, has failed to measure up.
Despite the discussion being tabled, the Wall Street Journal reports that Samsung isn’t permanently excluding Bing as a future option for a default search engine. This means that there is still a possibility that Samsung may choose Bing as its default search engine in the future.
In conclusion, Samsung’s decision to abandon plans to replace Google with Bing as the default search engine for its smartphones is a significant win for Google. It also highlights the challenges that Bing faces in competing with Google’s dominance in the search engine market. However, with Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI and Bing’s new generative AI capabilities, the search engine market may see some changes in the future.
