By using conceptual AI to obtain links and respond to user questions in a conversational tone, OpenAI claimed the new device may help users find what they were looking for more quickly and simply. Ultimately, SearchGPT could be integrated into the well-known ChatGPT robot of OpenAI. The search engine will also use details provided by producers who have entered agreements, giving OpenAI access to their data, in addition to a wider web search.
OpenAI’s director, Kayla Wood, confirmed that the business has previously consulted with unknown partners and publishers and that it has improved aspects of the search engine based on their input, but she declined to give a SearchGPT video or discussion about the new tool to WIRED.
When Microsoft released an AI-powered type of Bing again in 2023 that relied on OpenAI’s big speech models, it was one of the first companies to offer a conceptual AI research engine to the public. That Microsoft AI search tool has since been changed to Copilot.
Since then multiple competitors, like Google and Perplexity, have launched their own AI search experiences for users. Google‘s AI Overviews provide AI-generated summaries of articles, often at the top of news results. OpenAI’s SearchGPT appears more similar to Perplexity’s approach, where the chatbot provides an accompanying list of relevant links and the user can ask follow-up questions.
In November 2022, OpenAI first introduced ChatGPT, and early users saw in the chatbot’s ability to compile and summarize information from the web as a potential replacement for conventional web searches. Chatbots are n’t great search tools because of the limitations of large language models, though. When unsure of an answer, the models use training data that is frequently months or years old.
Microsoft’s early efforts with Bing were far from a success, with the AI-powered search engine producing strange, inappropriate, and incorrect answers. Bing’s market share grew only slightly following the overhaul.
Google quickly encountered reliability issues when it began adding AI Overviews to search results in May, like suggesting that people put glue on pizza. The industry standard for AI search and designed to lower the rate of hallucinations in chatbot answers, OpenAI’s SearchGPT may employ a generative AI approach known as retrieval augmented generation. With a RAG approach, the AI tool references trusted information, like a preferred news website, while generating its output and links back to where the data originated.
There’s also the question of potential copyright violations. Particularly perplexity has been criticized by publications, including WIRED, for using its AI search tool to copy aspects of original journalism and appearing to ignore requests to not remove content from some websites. The company mentions its commitment to publishers in a blog post from OpenAI:” SearchGPT is designed to help users connect with publishers by prominently citing and linking to them in searches. Multiple companies, including Vox Media, The Atlantic, News Corp, and The Financial Times, have all signed licensing agreements with OpenAI this year.
Google may be able to outperform OpenAI in the world of web search. The search giant quickly created a Gemini competitor to ChatGPT after being left flat-footed in this field. In addition to searching, it has also made significant efforts to incorporate the technology into its business offerings, including its office software and Android mobile operating system.
It’s incredibly challenging to provide a search tool that is measurably better than what people are used to, according to Richard Socher, CEO of You.com, a tool that uses generative AI to surface information from the web. He claims that Because of this, You.com has become more of a business-focused research tool. Socher adds that the shift in OpenAI’s focus from developing artificial general intelligence to more lucrative endeavors will present its own challenges. ” It’s a very different mindset”, he says.
