OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, a language model, is venturing into the search engine market with plans to expand ChatGPT's capabilities, according to a recent report by Bloomberg. The company aims to equip ChatGPT with a web-crawling feature that can search the internet for answers and provide detailed responses with source citations that mirrors the functionality of Google Search.

This move by OpenAI positions the company as a direct competitor to Alphabet Inc.'s Google and other AI-powered search startups like Perplexity. According to Bloomberg, the envisioned search feature for ChatGPT is anticipated to significantly enhance the language model's capabilities, allowing users to pose questions and receive responses with relevant information sourced from the web, complemented by citations from sources such as Wikipedia articles or blog posts. The system may even incorporate visuals like diagrams to augment written instructions.

OpenAI's decision to delve into the search engine arena comes as no surprise, given the escalating demand for advanced functionalities within chatbot technologies. With competitors intensifying their offerings, OpenAI is under pressure to fortify ChatGPT's position in the evolving landscape. Notably, startups like Perplexity have made significant strides in this domain, garnering attention and substantial valuations with AI-driven search engines emphasising accuracy and source authenticity. Google, on the other hand, is actively integrating AI into its core search experience, with anticipated announcements at its upcoming I/O event surrounding its Gemini AI models.

Details about the user interface for the ChatGPT search engine are yet to be unveiled. However, it is anticipated that the interface will be similar to Microsoft Copilot which uses GPT-4 with the Bing search engine.

While OpenAI has not officially confirmed these developments, industry insiders speculate that an official unveiling could be right around the corner.