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OpenAI launches search for ChatGPT, a direct competitor to Google

OpenAI launches search for ChatGPT, a direct competitor to Google

ChatGPT Plus subscribers, Teams subscribers and SearchGPT waitlist members can use OpenAI’s generative search engine starting today, the artificial intelligence giant announced on October 31.

This could be a Halloween threat for Google Search, as OpenAI is directly aimed at luring users away from Google’s algorithm. OpenAI has created a Chrome extension that allows you to set ChatGPT search as your browser’s default search engine. ChatGPT Search also competes with Microsoft’s Bing Chat on the Bing search engine.

ChatGPT Search will open to enterprise and education users “in the next few weeks.” OpenAI reported this on its blog.. Free tier users will see the new functionality “in the coming months.”

What is ChatGPT search?

OpenAI ChatGPT Search is a generative AI search function that returns text written using a large language model and links to external websites. It works on a modified version GPT-4o combined with some OpenAI o1-preview results.

OpenAI first introduced ChatGPT search as SearchGPT in preview in July.

OpenAI wants to give a ‘better answer’ than its competitors

Google Search ranks results based on their initiatives to promote “people first” content. However, the results are not always relevant or useful. In the last few years, it has become more difficult to find old content or content that is not intended to directly answer a question.

OpenAI wants to eliminate link digging by using the context of natural-sounding conversations that a ChatGPT user can have with the AI.

“Ask additional questions deeper and ChatGPT will consider the entire context of your chat to get the best answer for you,” OpenAI writes.

ChatGPT search can be accessed using the backslash command.
ChatGPT search can be accessed using the backslash command, which conveniently shows OpenAI’s taxonomy for the features of its current models. Image: OpenAI

Like Google AI reviews, ChatGPT search will display sources of information in a sidebar in the right column.

ChatGPT search offers weather forecasts, stocks and sports results. OpenAI currently has no plans to include advertising.

WATCH: Google opened its AI Review Search Assistant to more countries at the end of October.

Use of news media in AI search results stirs controversy

OpenAI has collaborated with media outlets including the Associated Press, Reuters, The Atlantic and Time. According to Washington PostChatGPT search will guide election-related issues to well-established news sites such as the Associated Press and Reuters.

Non-affiliated sites can control whether they appear in ChatGPT search results by allowing or disabling OAI-SearchBot OpenAI in their robots.txt file.

Some newspapers, including The New York Times, sued OpenAI for copyright infringement of their content. Meanwhile, other media groups see the alliance with OpenAI as a valuable business strategy in the era of generative artificial intelligence.

“ChatGPT Search promises to better highlight and attribute information from trusted news sources, benefiting audiences while expanding the reach of publishers like us who produce premium journalism,” Vox Media President Pam Wasserstein said in an OpenAI blog post.