If recent reports are to be believed, search engines could be the next frontier of the chatbot revolution.

Inside sources told The Verge on Thursday that Microsoft Corp. will announce plans to integrate bots into Bing at its Build developer conference next week. The leak is supported by the schedule that Microsoft has published through the official companion app for the event. One of the session listings contains the snippet “you can add your custom bots to Bing” in the description.

Microsoft already seems to be experimenting with search bots as part of a limited pilot program. There are reports dating back as far as a month about a virtual assistant that sporadically appears when looking up restaurants near the company’s Redmond, Washington, headquarters.

The bot is accessible through a tab at the bottom right corner of Bing that features a “Powered by Skype” mark, while the chat window displays a selection of about a dozen pre-programmed questions that users can ask. They cover common inquires such as when a restaurant is open, what parking options it offers and how to reserve a table.

The session listing on the Build schedule suggests that companies will have the ability to tailor the behavior of chatbots for their target audiences. Microsoft presumably hopes that the feature will help Bing to draw users away from Google Inc.’s search engine. Moreover, it could enable the technology giant to open a new revenue stream by charging for virtual assistants displayed next to search results.

But pulling it off won’t be easy. Google displays venue opening hours and many other types of frequently sought information in a box that appears above search results without requiring users to take any special action. For Microsoft’s chatbots to become a truly competitive alternative, they’ll need the ability to not only answer basic inquiries but also carry out tasks such as reserving a table.

The company already has the tooling necessary to support such a feature. Most notably, it offers a chatbot-building service that enables developers to implement automation capabilities with relatively little effort. Google has a similar offering that may end up playing a role in the search market as well if Microsoft’s initiative picks up enough steam.

Image: Microsoft