OpenAI has announced that it is now possible to shop directly in ChatGPT, although the purchase still requires going through a third-party website. This new feature further blurs the line between the generative artificial intelligence (AI) interface and the search engine.
When you search in plain language, ChatGPT offers product ideas with a short description, a summary of user reviews, and links to merchant websites to make the final purchase. The service, available in the United States since Monday, will gradually be rolled out to all markets where ChatGPT is present, including users who do not have a ChatGPT account. Initially limited to a database, ChatGPT integrates internet content into its results, bringing it closer to Google's search engine. With the integration of shopping, OpenAI is entering into even more direct competition with Alphabet's subsidiary.
"Just start a conversation"
"Online shopping can be tedious," OpenAI said in a statement. "Instead of scrolling through pages of results," a clear reference to Google, "you can just start a conversation. Ask follow-up questions, compare products, and focus on what matters most, all in natural language." OpenAI is currently limiting its product range to fashion, beauty, home, and electronics, "and will expand its offerings based on feedback."
To counter the emergence of competing AI assistants, Google is integrating its own platform, Gemini, into its search engine. It offers an AI-generated answer at the top of the page, before the usual links to relevant websites. According to the specialized website Techcrunch, OpenAI will not receive a percentage of the e-commerce revenue generated through ChatGPT.
"Search has become one of the most popular and fastest-growing features," OpenAI revealed, stating that it had conducted over a billion searches in the last week. The results obtained "are independently selected and are not advertisements," the startup clarified, noting its difference from Google, which offers the option to pay to improve its position in search results. OpenAI will soon add a memory feature to shopping, giving ChatGPT more context about users' tastes and needs. I BGNES