Bing Chat Plugins are now live in Microsoft Edge's sidebar

Recently, Microsoft made the Unified Store available in Edge Canary to add Bing Chat Plugins to the browser. Copilot, powered by Bing Chat, now comes with the Bing Search plugin included and enabled by default. This suggests that more Chat Plugins from Microsoft and third-party providers may soon be available for users to install and use from the Edge Sidebar.

Microsoft first announced Bing Chat plugins at the Build 2023 event. Some announced plugins available in Edge Canary include Shop, KAYAK, Klarna Shopping, Wolfram, Zillow, Redfin, OpenTable, InstaCart, and Wolfram Alpha, and you can temporarily add these plugins to Edge from the sidebar.

How to install Bing Chat Plugins in Edge browser

Microsoft Edge has a dedicated Unified Store that allows users to seamlessly install and manage apps, sites, and Chat Plugins. You can install the plugins from the sidebar by clicking the customize option (+ sign) or visiting the unified store in the Edge browser address bar edge://hub-app-store/.

While we can install the plugins, they are not fully activated or ready to use. The Try now button for each plugin remains inactive.

Copilot in Microsoft Edge gets Bing Search plugin

Copilot, powered by Bing Chat in the Edge Sidebar, started emphasizing the availability of Plugins and suggests that you can use them to find restaurant reservations, flights, and more.

While the installed plugins are unavailable, Edge has the Bing Search Plugin automatically enabled by default. You can enable or disable the search plugin when using Bing Chat in the sidebar. Disabling the Search plugin prompts Copilot to start a new topic and activate a search.

Taking into account the fact that the plugins are present, we suspect that it won’t be long until they’ll also be available for general use. This means that you’ll get a lot more from your searches and the entire process will be a lot more dynamic. But what’s your take on the new plugins? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.