OpenAI is releasing a search engine under its own name. Users are shown only the AI’s answer to a search query. No list of relevant Web sites is generated.
SearchGPT, OpenAI’s AI search engine, is the most radical form of an AI search engine. It differs from traditional search engines in that it does not provide a list of relevant websites. The sources on which the answer is based are the only search results stated behind the answer. However, those lists are still available to users searching with AI in the most popular search engines.
‘Improving ChatGPT’
The AI toolmaker does not seem intent on competing in the search engine field. SearchGPT is presented as a “temporary prototype.” The goal is to collect feedback from SearchGPT users to improve the AI chatbot ChatGPT.
By the way, the basics of the chatbot are also reflected in the new product. For example, a search is still done based on chat interactions. The tool supports queries that expand on questions previously asked by the user. According to OpenAI, the search engine always takes the previously asked questions as context to generate an output for the last search query.
OpenAI has opened a waiting list for users to sign up for access to SearchGPT.
Source: OpenAI
Not satisfied with existing tools
According to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, the improvements will make the chatbot “real-time and maximally useful.” Altman says online search as we know it today is outdated. “We think there is room to make search much better than it is today.”
Traditional search engines, however, are also experimenting with the possibilities of AI. Microsoft announced a few hours earlier that it will enhance its search engine with AI in Bing Generative Search. That is probably not entirely coincidentally happening at about the same time as the company’s AI partner, OpenAI. Google launched AI Overviews several months ago. However, these search engines still have some obstacles to overcome to combat inaccurate answers.
Also read: Bing Generative Search is Microsoft’s variant of Google’s AI search engine