SearchGPT – OpenAI’s Answer to Google AI Reviews
ChatGPT gained the ability to search the web late last year, but there’s a difference between an AI chatbot that can use real-time information and a full-fledged AI search engine like Google AI Reviews or Perplexity . Shortly after Microsoft announced it was working on generative search for Bing , OpenAI announced SearchGPT , its own entry into this space.
Based on GPT-4 models, SearchGPT is a cross between a chatbot and a list of links, giving it a more conversational feel than competing options. You’ll start your search with a simple question, then receive basic information, a curated selection of links, and an invitation to ask a follow-up question. In the examples, the interface is clean and doesn’t necessarily display AI-generated paragraphs on every search, which can help the chatbot avoid mistakes associated with Google AI reviews . Instead, he relies on you to guide him, but you can ask for longer and more detailed answers if you want.
Users will also be able to bring up a sidebar with additional links, allowing them to access a more traditional interface. The Verge also reports that OpenAI talked about a feature called “visual responses,” but did not go into detail. Given the photo logo on the sidebar, I’d guess it’s similar to Google Images, but with artificial intelligence.
OpenAI promises that SearchGPT will provide “clear links to relevant sources,” and preview examples show that all information produced is clearly linked to specific websites via parenthetical citations. This could help SearchGPT avoid the kind of trouble that Perplexity found itself in after being accused of content theft , although even in the case of sources in countries such as Australia, the legality of simply trusting information rather than forcing users to click through has been questioned. links.
Like Bing’s generative search, SearchGPT isn’t quite ready for the light yet. It’s currently a prototype, but will first launch to “a small group of users and publishers to get feedback.” It also launches a tool to allow publishers to control how they are rendered in the engine. OpenAI spokesperson Kayla Woods told The Verge that the testing pool will start with 10,000 users, but you can sign up for the waitlist here . There is currently no information on whether SearchGPT will implement any kind of paywall.