Microsoft’s Bing chatbot just got some big improvements in the latest update for the AI, including important moves to make it less prone to freezing up and not responding – as well as making it smarter with maths and when dealing with news queries.

As Microsoft explains in a blog post, the Bing AI will now suffer fewer instances when it just brings a conversation session to an abrupt (and unfriendly) end. This pertains to situations that occur with some messages that make Bing just close the chat, saying something like it’s time to change the topic, or that it prefers not to continue the conversation.

Microsoft notes: “This should now occur less frequently than before, and we’re continuing to investigate cases where this happens.”

On top of that, Microsoft has fixed a known issue whereby the ChatGPT-powered Bing hits an error and simply returns no response to a query.

Another improvement has been made to ensure that Bing gives better responses with queries about the news, such as when informing the user of breaking news stories at the time.

Finally, the Bing chatbot now incorporates LaTeX markup support, meaning it can correctly show complex mathematical expressions, making the AI more useful for tasks like writing technical research papers, Microsoft notes.

All these are the latest steps Microsoft has taken in terms of honing the Bing AI and adding more features, with progress being made pretty swiftly in recent times – worryingly so for Google and its Bard AI rival.

Analysis: A better Bing through feedback

In short, the ChatGPT-powered Bing AI just got a good deal cleverer – or a good deal less stupid. Both, actually, considering there are important improvements here on the maths and news fronts, along with eliminating some of the more frustrating errors that can confront those using the chatbot.