OpenAI launches SearchGPT as a Google Search competitor

OpenAI is testing SearchGPT, an AI-powered search engine that aims to provide fast, up-to-date answers while citing sources. It will be integrated into ChatGPT, competing with similar features from Perplexity and Google. The Atlantic's CEO sees AI search as a key future tool. OpenAI pays selected publishers like News Corp to use their content in SearchGPT through a Preferred Publisher Program. SearchGPT will likely drive less traffic to websites compared to traditional search engines.

OpenAI is testing SearchGPT, an AI-powered search engine that integrates with ChatGPT, launched in November 2022. It partners with publishers like Reuters but faces a lawsuit from The New York Times. Similar technologies exist from Google, Microsoft, and Perplexity. The new search engine will provide information on events like the Paris Olympics and highlight high quality content with multiple opportunities for user engagement.

SearchGPT is a temporary prototype that will combine OpenAI's AI models, such as ChatGPT, with the ability to search the internet, aiming to provide a new way to search the web faster and easier.

OpenAI's SearchGPT prominently cites and links to publishers, aiming to address concerns around AI-generated content cannibalization. However, the company's past practices of scraping content without permission raise questions about its commitment to a "thriving ecosystem of publishers and creators".