Bing's Adaptive Search Personalizes Results Based on Interests, from Previous Queries

Bing's market share may not show it, but Microsoft has a solid product with its newest search engine. And it's improving it all the time, Bing has now introduced a new technology, dubbed Adaptive Search, which personalizes search results based on your previous queries.

Both Bing and Google personalize search results, there are plenty of cases when the exact same query returns slightly different results for different users.

But Adaptive Search goes one step further since it relies on a sort of profile Bing creates for you, based on your previous searches.

The algorithm tries to determine which type of searches you are more interested in, whether you want entertainment news or planning a trip and are looking for travel advice.

This leads to slightly altered search results, entries that would be more relevant given your profile and context will be pushed up in the ranking.

"Earlier this year, we started to take on the challenges of personalized search by looking at two key scenarios – the first was tailoring results based on your physical location, and the second was designed to 're-find' websites you had previously visited," Aidan Crook, from Bing Search, detailed the existing type of personalized results.

"Today, we’re taking another step forward with the roll-out of a new feature: Adaptive Search," he announced.

"Every time you search on Bing, the information provided helps Bing understand what you’re trying to do," he explained.

"The more you search, the more Bing can learn – and use that information to adapt the experience so you can spend less time searching and accomplish what you set out to do," he added.

Adaptive Search relies on previous queries, so there is a privacy concern. It uses your search history to determine what you're more interested in, but entries are only stored for 28 days for regular visitors.

You can also clear your search history at any time. For logged-in users, the data is stored for 18 months, so Adaptive Search should be significantly more relevant to them.