Microsoft rolls back Bing Image Creator update following quality complaints
What's the story
Microsoft is rolling back an update it pushed on the AI model of Bing Image Creator, its image-editing tool.
The upgrade was based on the latest version of OpenAI's DALL-E 3 model, PR16.
The new model aimed to improve user experience by doubling the speed and enhancing the quality of image creation. However, after a wave of user complaints about degraded quality on X and Reddit, Microsoft has decided to revert to last version until further improvements can be made.
User feedback
User dissatisfaction prompts Microsoft's decision
Users took to different platforms to voice their displeasure over the updated model.
"The DALL-E we used to love is gone forever," one Reddit user lamented, while another said, "I'm using ChatGPT now because Bing has become useless for me."
The widespread discontent prompted Microsoft to announce that it will revert to the previous model until it can fix these issues.
Jordi Ribas, head of search at Microsoft, confirmed this in a recent post on X.
Issue acknowledgment
Issues with new model acknowledged
Ribas acknowledged the issues raised by users and detailed Microsoft's plan to address them.
He said, "We've been able to [reproduce] some of the issues reported, and plan to revert to [DALL-E 3] PR13 until we can fix them."
However, he also mentioned that this process would be slow and could take as long as three weeks before it is fully implemented.
Model criticism
Criticisms of the new model's output
Many users slammed the new model for generating less realistic images.
Windows Latest recently noted that PR16-generated images lacked detail and polish, and often appeared cartoonish and "lifeless."
Notably, this isn't the first time an image model has faced public backlash despite passing internal checks.
Earlier this year, Google had to suspend its AI chatbot Gemini's ability to create images of people due to user complaints about historical inaccuracies.
Metric mismatch
Microsoft's internal metrics versus user preferences
Despite the backlash, Ribas revealed that Microsoft's internal benchmarking found PR16's quality to be "a bit better on average" compared to the previous Bing Image Creator model.
This discrepancy between the company's internal metrics and user preferences highlights the challenges in measuring model improvements in real-world applications.
It also underscores the importance of user feedback in refining AI models for public use.