[Review] Understanding Conversation Context and Information Sources Seamlessly... "Google, Be Worried"

OpenAI Launches ChatGPT Search
Introduces AI and Conversational Interface
Enables Intuitive Searching
Answer Quality Varies by Question Language
Source Recency Differs Greatly Depending on Question

When clicking the globe-shaped icon in the ChatGPT search bar and asking, "Recommend restaurants with rooms for business meetings near Euljiro 3-ga Station," it responded by suggesting Korean, Japanese, and Chinese restaurants where one can have a private meal. It also displayed a map showing the locations of the restaurants. Clicking 'Source' below the map revealed a list of web pages ChatGPT used for the search, including Naver blogs and gourmet search portals.

OpenAI officially launched 'ChatGPT Search' on the 31st of last month. Unlike AI that answers based on pre-learned data, it searches real-time information to respond to user questions. Unlike traditional search, it allows users to continue asking follow-up questions conversationally to find information.

In the ChatGPT search bar, major keywords appear like real-time trending searches. Clicking on 'Greenbelt Release' among 'Greenbelt Release,' 'US Presidential Election,' and 'US President' organized the government's announcements in a timeline format. When asked to update only the content announced in November, it neatly displayed ▲release areas ▲housing supply scale ▲supply schedule. When asked additionally, "Tell me the supply volume for Uijeongbu among these," it answered "7,000 households."

It was convenient to ask follow-up questions conversationally and get answers directly on the queried page. Since the AI automatically finds answers fitting the conversation context, there is no need to worry about the question format, allowing intuitive and natural queries. In contrast, existing search engines like Google and Naver require re-entering the search with new conditions for follow-up questions. For example, searching "Uijeongbu supply volume" alone does not understand the full context, so one must search "November greenbelt release Uijeongbu supply volume."

Showing sources along with search results is a difference from the previous ChatGPT. Clicking the source button displayed links to sites referenced in ChatGPT's answers, such as news articles and blog posts. Ahead of the ChatGPT Search launch, OpenAI signed content supply agreements with major global media outlets like The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Financial Times (FT), and Associated Press (AP). Previously, verifying the accuracy of ChatGPT's answers required a separate process, but ChatGPT Search shows the evidence for answers all at once, increasing reliability.

Another advantage is delivering information in various formats beyond text. When asked to summarize Samsung Electronics' performance trends this year in a table, it instantly created one. It showed maps for restaurant recommendations and photos for fashion information. Below the text answers, there is a speaker icon that, when clicked, allows users to listen to the content audibly.

Another feature is the absence of advertisements. This differentiates it from search engines with ad-based revenue models. Without ads at the top, users do not need to scroll extensively, and there is no risk of being misled by promotional content mixed into search results. Adam Fry, OpenAI's ChatGPT Search lead, stated, "There are no plans to introduce ads into ChatGPT."

However, the quality of answers varies depending on the language of the question. When asked, "Tell me about Korean grocery stores in Arizona, USA," most results were based on 2020 reviews. Among the six stores provided, one was found to have closed upon checking Google. Asking the same question in English yielded different results, citing the latest reviews from the day before and excluding the incorrectly listed store from the Korean query. For questions based on domestic regions, it sometimes gave irrelevant answers. When asked about flight times from Seoul to Jeju this Sunday, it stated, "Korean Air operates flights hourly from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m." However, checking the airline's website showed different information.

The recency of answers also varies greatly depending on the question. Even without specifying a time, it provided answers based on the latest news for recent issues like the US presidential election and greenbelt release. On the other hand, for review-based answers like restaurant or travel recommendations, it often pulled older reviews. For example, clicking the source link for the Chinese restaurant recommended in the room-available restaurant query led to a 2017 menu blog post. Clicking other restaurant websites sometimes resulted in deleted pages.

Despite these shortcomings, the industry is watching whether ChatGPT Search will challenge Google's dominance. Currently, Google holds 90% of the global search market but has less influence in the advertising market than before. In this context, OpenAI's challenge, which changes the search paradigm and removes its core revenue source?advertising?is a noteworthy factor. Currently, ChatGPT Search is available only to paid subscribers. OpenAI plans to expand access to free users within a few months.