July 28, 2024 OpenAI is developing new capabilities for its artificial intelligence bot, ChatGPT, in an attempt to surpass Google as the leading search engine. The company is testing a search feature that integrates real-time information into ChatGPT, allowing the bot to provide up-to-date responses and links to user queries. Currently, this tool is available to a limited number of users in the US, but it is expected to become a permanent feature in ChatGPT, which has generated significant excitement about AI since its debut in 2022.
OpenAI, backed by Microsoft, has introduced various tools for coding, video creation, data analysis, and image generation. The new search tool will also allow users to ask follow-up questions to their original queries. The company stated, “Getting answers on the web can take a lot of effort, often requiring multiple attempts to get relevant results. We believe that by enhancing the conversational capabilities of our models with real-time information from the web, finding what you’re looking for can be faster and easier.”
Analysts have long argued that AI chatbots represent the future of search. This sector is currently highly lucrative for Google, which is rapidly incorporating its own AI-powered tools. Following the announcement, shares in Google’s parent company, Alphabet, dropped nearly 3%. Despite competition from other AI companies, Google remains the dominant player, holding over 90% of the global market.
The expansion of AI has sparked environmental concerns due to the significant energy consumption of these systems. Additionally, changes in how search engines respond to queries—providing conversational paragraphs instead of directing users to links—have alarmed news companies that rely on search traffic for revenue. OpenAI stated it is collaborating with publishers, including the Atlantic and News Corp, to develop its new search feature. The company is committed to supporting a thriving ecosystem of publishers and creators and has introduced a way for publishers to manage their presence in SearchGPT. Despite some media companies declining to supply their content for training the AI model, they can still be featured in search results. OpenAI has faced legal challenges, including a lawsuit from the New York Times for allegedly “stealing” content to train its systems, but it has also formed partnerships with outlets like the Associated Press.
