In a bold move to challenge Google’s dominance in online search, OpenAI, the startup behind ChatGPT, has announced the testing of a new prototype called “SearchGPT.” This innovative tool is designed to combine the strength of OpenAI’s advanced AI models with real-time information from the web, aiming to answer online queries swiftly and provide relevant sources.
Currently available to a select group of users and publishers for feedback, SearchGPT represents OpenAI’s step towards integrating conversational AI with search functionalities. “Users will be able to interact with SearchGPT through conversational queries and ask follow-up questions as they might if speaking to a person,” OpenAI stated in a recent blog post.
The features refined in this prototype are expected to be integrated into ChatGPT in the future, enhancing the AI assistant’s ability to provide up-to-date information sourced from the internet. This development comes as companies globally engage in a race to deploy generative AI programs capable of producing text, images, and other content through natural language prompts.
Google, one of OpenAI’s primary competitors, recently added AI-generated query result summaries—referred to as “Overviews”—to its search engine. This move has raised concerns about reduced opportunities for traditional advertising revenue. OpenAI’s description of SearchGPT bears resemblance to Google’s Overviews, signaling a competitive landscape in AI-driven search technology.
Industry leaders recognize the significance of AI in shaping the future of internet navigation. “We are innovating at every layer of the AI stack,” Google chief Sundar Pichai said during an earnings call for parent company Alphabet. Meanwhile, OpenAI is collaborating with publishers to refine SearchGPT while keeping it separate from the training of its foundational generative AI models.
Nicholas Thompson, chief executive of The Atlantic, expressed optimism about the collaboration. “AI search is going to become one of the key ways that people navigate the internet, and it’s crucial, in these early days, that the technology is built in a way that values, respects, and protects journalism and publishers,” Thompson said in OpenAI’s blog post. “We look forward to partnering with OpenAI in the process.”
OpenAI has invited interested users to sign up on a waitlist to try SearchGPT, signaling the company’s commitment to gathering user feedback and refining the tool before a wider release.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
