What you need to know
- Rumors are intensifying about OpenAI potentially launching a competitor to Google Search.
- A new report now says OpenAI plans to debut a Google Search rival early next week.
- The timing of OpenAI's rumored launch would edge out Google's own developer conference, Google I/O 2024, which starts Tuesday.
The markets for search and artificial intelligence are colliding, with the major players in both markets trying to enhance AI with web results and vice versa. Google has the Search Generative Experience (SGE), which uses AI to summarize web results in digestible blocks. Now, it looks like OpenAI is ready to launch a Google Search competitor, according to a Reuters report. The company will reportedly debut a search engine rival on Monday, May 13 — exactly one day before Google I/O 2024.
OpenAI has ChatGPT, a leading AI chatbot that uses the company's GPT-3.5 and GPT -4 models. However, ChatGPT seems to be falling behind in providing web results. Alternative chatbots, like Google's Gemini and Microsoft's Copilot, are better at sourcing information with real-time web results. This is likely an area where OpenAI hopes to improve with its to-be-announced Google Search competitor.
According to the report, this search engine alternative is still largely based on ChatGPT. When it is released, the OpenAI search product will be able to find and source timely web results in response to user queries. Sources and citations are important for any chatbot that uses LLMs because they tend to "hallucinate" or essentially makeup information. With this new search product, OpenAI will make it easier for ChatGPT users to check the accuracy of its responses.
Right now, it's unclear whether this offering will be available for free, be ad-supported, or be locked behind OpenAI's ChatGPT Plus subscription. ChatGPT Plus costs $20 per month and includes some exclusive features, like expanded rate limits and priority access to OpenAI's best LLMs.
Based on this report, OpenAI's search competitor sounds very similar to Google's own Search Generative Experience. SGE is rolling out more widely of late, and it summarizes web results into a quick AI-generated summary. Like OpenAI's rumored search product, SGE also provides sources for its responses.
OpenAI's announcement of its Google Search competitor, if it indeed comes Monday, would not be scheduled by accident. That's exactly one day before Google kicks off its Google I/O 2024 developer conference, and AI will surely be a focus at the company's event. OpenAI appears to be trying to beat Google to the punch in developing the next AI-based search features.
