OpenAI takes on Google with its new ChatGPT Search

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OpenAI was rumored to integrate a web search function into ChatGPT, allowing it to better compete against long-standing search engines like Google Search and Microsoft Bing.

Today, the company officially announced the launch of ChatGPT Search, its new AI-powered feature that allows ChatGPT to deliver answers to your quarry with links to relevant web sources.

The company claims that its new AI-powered search is designed to get better answers.

OpenAI has also partnered up with several news and data providers to add up-to-date information and new visual designs for categories like weather, stocks, sports, news, and maps.

Don’t fret; a manual search is also available. You can access it by clicking the web search icon.

So, from now on, expect chants to include links to new posts.

Can ChatGPT Search replace Google as the default search engine?

Image: OpenAI/KnowTechie

In addition, you will also see a “Sources” button, which you can click to launch a sidebar containing references used for the answer.

OpenAI also adds that it will keep improving the search in specific areas like shopping and travel by leveraging the reasoning capabilities of the OpenAI o1 series to do deeper research.

However, the launch of the ChatGPT Search isn’t sudden.

Google even dreaded this day, as the company may lose its dominance over the search engine space since OpenAI launched a beta version of its search engine in July called SearchGPT.

Stylish backyard design ideas with seating and decor. — Image: OpenAI

The company has now integrated that feature into its chatbot and is calling it a fine-tuned version of GPT-4o.

The web search feature will be available across all ChatGPT platforms, including the web, Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows.

As for availability, all the ChatGPT Plus, Team users, and SearchGPT waitlist users will have access to the search feature today.

The Enterprise and Edu users will have to wait a few weeks, and the free users shouldn’t expect it anytime soon, maybe in a couple of months.

What do you think about this new ChatGPT Search? Do you think this could be another nail in Google’s search dominance coffin? We would love to hear more from you below in the comments, or via our Twitter or Facebook.