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Tag: visual search

  • Windows Search Bar Upgraded With Visual Search

    Windows Search Bar Upgraded With Visual Search

    Microsoft announced a major upgrade to the Windows search bar, giving users the ability to search using an image.

    The feature is designed to work with screenshots. “Simply click the Bing Visual Search button in the bottom right corner and snip any part of your screen to search the web using the image,” according to the post.

    Bing has had camera-based searches since 2017, but this new upgrade is designed to make it faster and easier for someone to find images similar to what they’re already looking at onscreen.

    “We found people also wanted to search with screenshots, so we brought searching with screen snips to the Windows search bar,” says Nektarios Ioannides, Bing Image Search lead.

    The feature recognizes clothes, furniture, animals, flowers, landmarks, celebrities and even text within images. There is also an API available so developers can incorporate the feature in their own apps.

    The feature is rolling out to U.S. customers first, with International markets to follow and requires Windows 10 May 2019 Update or newer.

  • Snapchat and Amazon Could Be Teaming Up on a New Visual Search Tool

    Snapchat and Amazon Could Be Teaming Up on a New Visual Search Tool

    Snapchat is seeking to expand its horizons and utilize its camera to go beyond social media with a new visual search feature. This novel search capability and a team-up with Amazon could open a new revenue stream for the company.

    According to reports, a new Snapchat version for Android smartphones includes a secret code for a new “Visual Search” feature. This new feature, dubbed Project Eagle, can allegedly utilize Snapchat’s camera to send a barcode or product image scans to Amazon. The retail powerhouse will then display the results of the product search.

    The secret code was reportedly discovered by Ishan Agarwal, an app researcher. Agarwal then tipped off TechCrunch about his discovery. On their end, the company was quick to spot a source code in Snapchat that had a pop-up text with the lines — “Press and hold to identify an object, song, barcode, and more! This works by sending data to Amazon, Shazam, and other partners.”

    The discovered code doesn’t really explain how the visual search feature will work. However, the application’s code enumerates the capacity to bring “reviews” and “sellers” to the surface, “Copy URL” of a specific product as well as “Send Product” or “Share” it with friends. These actions could be done through Snapchat Stories or simple Snap messages.

    Project Eagle will undoubtedly change the way people see Snapchat. Instead of being just a social media app, it could become a clever tool for navigating retail. It can also provide the company with a new revenue source if it works out an affiliate referrals deal with Amazon.

    This is something that Snapchat desperately needs at the moment. The company has suffered a loss of $385 million in the previous quarter, with its missing revenue pegged to be at $14 million. Snapchat’s stock also closed Monday at $13.65 per share, way below the $17 offering price.

    Amazon is so far keeping mum about Snapchat’s visual search feature. It should be pointed out that there’s no definitive proof to indicate that the retail giant is working with Snapchat or if it’s just the end destination of the search results. As for Snapchat, mother company Snap Inc. just issued a “no comment” when asked about the rumored visual search.

    One thing is certain though, a solid visual search feature could turn Snapchat into something more than a selfie aficionado’s favorite app. It could usher in a groundbreaking way for consumers to search for products to purchase.

    [Featured image via Pexels.com]

  • Bing Gets New ‘Visual Search’ Feature, Competes With Google Lens

    Bing Gets New ‘Visual Search’ Feature, Competes With Google Lens

    Microsoft is not going to let Google have all the fun. The company has recently unveiled Visual Search for Bing, a feature that’s expected to complete with Google Lens.

    Visual Search is a new AI-powered search function that builds on the Intelligent Search feature that Bing rolled out in December of last year. The feature allows users to search the web or look for products via photos saved on their camera rolls or pictures they have taken. For instance, you can find more information about an unfamiliar flower or an interesting building you came across by taking a photo through the Bing app or by uploading it from your device. The Visual Search feature will then identify the subject and provide you with links containing key information about it.

    Consumers will also be able to shop for clothes, accessories, or furniture in the same way. Let’s say a woman sees a necklace she likes. She can take a shot or upload a picture of the item and Visual Search will send her information on where she can buy the necklace, the price, and other details. The feature can also send her similar-looking products.

    According to Vince Leung, Microsoft’s product lead, there are instances where “it is almost impossible to describe what you want to search for using words.” Visual search will certainly ease that dilemma, especially as the algorithm the program uses is continuously learning. Since the algorithm works by using data that contains millions of images, the more data is searched for in Bing, the better the algorithm becomes.

    Bing’s core team stated that consumers can expect the Visual Search feature to expand and improve continuously. You can now avail of the function’s latest version in the Bing app for Android and iOS. It’s also available on Microsoft Launcher and the Edge browser for Android. Visual Search will also be available soon on the Bing.com and on Microsoft Edge for iOS.

  • Google to Bolster Google Goggles with Plink Acquisition

    Google has acquired the UK-based visual search engine company Plink, which makes PlinkArt, a mobile app that lets users take a picture with their phone and identify paintings and artworks. Google is adding Plink to work on its Google Goggles project.

    Google introduced Goggles as a Google Labs project back in December. It was cool from the get go, but the potential it displayed was far greater than the actual functionality. The addition of Plink will allow Google to expand on that functionality. Google Goggles lets you search Google using pictures from your camera phone. They take an image as input, and using "several image recognition backends," such as object recognition, OCR, face matching, etc. Goggles returns relevant results (at least in theory). It even lets users get local business information without even taking a picture. For that, it uses GPS and compass data.

    "We started Plink to bring the power of visual search to everyone, and we’re delighted to be taking a big step towards that goal today," say founders Mark Cummins and James Philbin. "Google has already shown that it’s serious about investing in this space with Google Goggles, and for the Plink team the opportunity to take our algorithms to Google-scale was just too exciting to pass up."

    Plink Tweets about being acquired by Google - Visual Search company

    "The visual search engines of today can do some pretty cool things, but they still have a long long way to go," the pair add. "We’re looking forward to helping the Goggles team build a visual search engine that works not just for paintings or book covers, but for everything you see around you. There are beautiful things to be done with computer vision – it’s going to be a lot of fun!"

    PlinkArt will still be available for download and will continue to work, but the company will no longer be updating it. They will instead focus all thier efforts on Google Goggles.

    Financial terms of the Plink acquisition have not been disclosed.