Bing & Copilot Go Down, Creating A Domino Effect That Cripples Millions
Photo 308875342 © Dennizn | Dreamstime.com
Microsoft’s Bing went down as of May 23, 2024, at 2:45AM ET (May 22, 2024, at 11:45PM PT), and the digital world felt the jolt. When a major search engine like Bing takes an unscheduled nap, it’s more than just a minor hiccup—it’s a wrench in the works causing widespread headaches.
Bing and its related services, such as Copilot, boast millions of users—over 100 million daily active users—who suddenly find themselves in a lurch when there’s an outage, forcing them to turn to other tools they are less familiar with. More than 10 million users engage with Copilot regularly, integrating the AI chatbot into their daily workflows to enhance productivity and streamline tasks.
Copilot down? #Bing #copilot #microsoft pic.twitter.com/Dh8CbdpvOU
— Swapna Sundar Biswal (@IamBiswal) May 23, 2024
“It’s down and I’m not going to meet today’s deadline!” a social media user tells DesignTAXI.
Likewise, related search engines like DuckDuckGo and Ecosia, which depend on Bing infrastructure, will suffer. Developers might find themselves in a scramble, quickly integrating alternative APIs to keep things running smoothly (Note: DuckDuckGo itself is experiencing a blackout as of the time of writing. While Yahoo Search is powered by Bing API, it does not appear to currently be encountering the same issues.).
Bing is so broken right now they had to go old school 😂 #BingDown pic.twitter.com/JuZLtMIOUg
— FB3 Network ðŸ³ï¸ðŸŒˆ (@FB3Network) May 23, 2024
ChatGPT’s browsing functionality runs on Bing technology, as well, meaning that anyone using a superpowered version of the traditional internet search might have to revert to the classics (like Google, egads!).
Businesses aren’t spared either. Those leveraging Bing Ads face an abrupt halt in their advertising campaigns, which can lead to revenue losses and a reduced audience reach, on top of facing a noticeable dip in visits. Online visibility is crucial, and a major search engine going down can feel like pulling the rug out from underfoot.
It’s a reminder of just how interconnected and dependent we are on digital tools to keep our online world spinning smoothly. Take them away, and people are suddenly paralyzed.
Bing is down. So are the search engines dependent on it @DuckDuckGo and @ecosia
— Piotrek Bodera ðŸŒðŸðŸ‘¨ðŸ’» (@nerdontour) May 23, 2024
It would be great to have a backup engine that works independently of Microsoft's Bing.
Search engines that are powered by Bing, including:
— Doge Master (@RealDogeMaster) May 23, 2024
- Bing
- DuckDuckGo
- Ecosia
Are all down right now and have been for over 90 minutes. Obviously alternatives exist but, still, interesting.
[via DesignTAXI Community]
