OpenAI introduces SearchGPT, a search engine powered by AI. The company plans to integrate the best features into ChatGPT, potentially shaking up the search landscape.
OpenAI previewed SearchGPT, a new search engine powered by artificial intelligence technology.
The company described the service as a “temporary prototype” in a blog post. According to OpenAI, the plan is to collect feedback about SearchGPT from a group of initial adopters and then integrate the best features into ChatGPT. That suggests the search engine won’t remain available as a standalone offering in the long term.
SearchGPT is built around a standard search box that inputs natural language queries. When it receives a prompt, the service doesn’t return a list of relevant web pages but rather AI-generated text that directly answers the user’s question. According to OpenAI, SearchGPT cites the webpage on which a prompt response is based with a link placed in parentheses at the end of the text.
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The service’s responses vary depending on the query. A simple question might prompt SearchGPT to display a single-sentence answer. In other cases, it may output multiple paragraphs or a list. Some SearchGPT responses include text, images, and a related content sidebar with links to relevant web pages.
SearchGPT supports follow-up questions. According to OpenAI, the service doesn’t simply answer the additional queries entered by the user but also considers the earlier requests that preceded them. That context can help the underlying AI models generate more relevant output.
For publishers, OpenAI is rolling out features that will enable them to manage how SearchGPT uses copyrighted content. The company didn’t specify how the features will work, but it did divulge that publishers may opt not to have their articles used for AI training but still include that content in SearchGPT search results.
“We think there is room to search much better than it is today,” OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman wrote on X. “We will learn from the prototype, make it better, and then integrate the tech into ChatGPT to make it real-time and maximally helpful.”
The company didn’t specify if the planned search feature will require a paid ChatGPT subscription or if it is set to become available for free. If SearchGPT were incorporated into ChatGPT’s free version, it could create more competition for Microsoft Corp.’s Bing, which language models from OpenAI also power. Microsoft has provided OpenAI more than $10 billion in cloud infrastructure and funding to support its work.
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SearchGPT could also potentially create more competition for Google LLC. Earlier this year, the Alphabet Inc. unit equipped its search engine with AI Overviews, which can directly answer user questions, similar to OpenAI’s new service.
It’s unclear how the ChatGPT developer plans to make money from its search technology. After integrating SearchGPT into ChatGPT, OpenAI might attempt to embed ads into the tool’s prompt answers. Alternatively, OpenAI could develop a paid enterprise version to help workers navigate business data repositories.
