These numbers show Microsoft's AI bet in search business is paying off well

Microsoft introduced AI to turbocharge its search business in a bid to go toe-to-toe with Google. The move helped them gain some traction, and as per the latest numbers shared by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, the company’s search engine has logged 40% increase in users on a year-over-year basis.
Microsoft’s earnings for the quarter that ended on March 31 was all about how AI helped the company to expand its business footprint.During the earnings call, Nadella said that Microsoft Bing surpassed 140 million daily users milestone – which is a 40% hike from last year when Microsoft announced Bing AI for the first time.
The AI-infused search engine has seen a massive jump with the introduction of Copilot, which helped it cross 100 million daily users back in March 2023. Named “Bing AI Chat” initially, it is now known with its rebranded name Copilot.
“Search and news advertising revenue ex-TAC increased 12%, ahead of expectations with continued volume growth and increased engagement on Bing and Edge,” said Amy Hood, Microsoft’s CFO.

Nadella also said that Copilot mobile app downloads were surging after a Super Bowl ad.
“We also rolled out Copilot to our ad platform this quarter, helping marketers use AI to generate recommendations for product images, headlines, and descriptions,” the CEO said.
In the same earning call, Nadella said that company was also focussing on security as it is now Microsoft’s “No. 1 priority”.
“Security underpins every layer of the tech stack and it's our No. 1 priority. We are doubling down on this very important work, putting security above all else, before all other features and investments,” Nadella said.