Sam Altman's OpenAI is taking on Google with a new search engine that uses the company's artificial intelligence technology.
Sam Altman's OpenAI is taking on Google with a new search engine that uses the company's artificial intelligence technology.

OpenAI is in the process of testing a new project dubbed SearchGPT, which utilizes its advanced AI capabilities alongside up-to-the-minute web information to allow individuals to query for data just as they would converse with ChatGPT.

OpenAI is poised to enter direct competition with Google

At this point, the search engine is being trialed on a small scale, but there are plans for a wider integration into the ChatGPT framework eventually.

By introducing this feature, OpenAI is poised to enter direct competition with Google, the long-standing heavyweight in the sphere of online searches.

This move comes as Google hastens to adapt to the quickening pace of the AI race, a competition OpenAI accelerated with ChatGPT’s debut in November 2022.

SearchGPT might also challenge Microsoft’s Bing

Besides Google, SearchGPT might also challenge Microsoft’s Bing, which had previously sought to leverage OpenAI’s technologies to boost its standing against Google.

SearchGPT will enable users to query in natural language, akin to their interactions with ChatGPT, and receive responses with the option for further inquiries.

Yet, unlike ChatGPT, which might lean on dated information, SearchGPT promises fresh data complemented by links to what are described as “clear and relevant sources.”

SearchGPT’s capability

A demonstration from the company highlighted SearchGPT’s capability by responding to a query about the “best tomatoes for Minnesota” with details on different tomato varieties and links to sites like “The Garden Magazine” and “The Gardening Dad.”

Furthermore, a sidebar in the tool will offer additional relevant links, echoing the familiar experience of Google Search’s results layout.

The endeavor is to simplify online answer-seeking, which can often be cumbersome and require several searches to obtain pertinent outcomes.

OpenAI’s venture into the search engine domain

By integrating conversational abilities with real-time web data, the company aims to make information retrieval both quicker and more straightforward.

OpenAI’s venture into the search engine domain signals a potential new era for generative AI—technology adept at producing original text and media—as the path forward in online information discovery, despite prior tests by Google and others to meld AI-generated responses and chatbots into the search process.

OpenAI’s announcement follows Google’s introduction of AI

Yet, this vision, promising as it may be, faces uncertainties due to AI’s tendency to deliver confidently presented but inaccurate information.

OpenAI’s announcement follows Google’s introduction of AI-generated summaries on its search results pages in May, designed to provide swift answers and reduce the need for clicking through multiple links.

OpenAI has engaged with publishers in developing SearchGPT

However, Google scaled back this feature following instances of misleading information, which also sparked concerns among news publishers about potential decreases in site traffic. Similar apprehensions could emerge regarding OpenAI’s search engine.

Nevertheless, OpenAI has engaged with publishers in developing SearchGPT, offering them control over their presence within the tool’s results.

It further assures that websites have the choice to opt out from having their content used in training the company’s AI models, while still being featured in SearchGPT’s search outcomes.