OpenAI Brings Back Internet Access Feature For ChatGPT Users

OpenAI is taking ChatGPT to the next level by allowing users access the internet. This has the potential to make the AI powered chatbot even more interesting for users who have expressed frustration about not being able to check and compare their results with database of the web as AI chatbots are sometimes prone to error especially because they can’t fully express themselves the way humans would.

The artificial intelligence powerhouse has introduced a browsing feature that grants ChatGPT Plus and Enterprise users the ability to navigate the internet. With this new feature, websites can determine how ChatGPT interacts with their content, offering a dynamic and engaging experience. I see how many websites would try and limit the information you can access using ChatGPT especially in this era of content right infringements. I must add that this feature used to be there in that you could paste a link in the chat or ask ChatGPT to access a website for you but after a series of complains from publishing houses, it disabled the feature and then you get the message below; 

I’m sorry for the inconvenience, but I cannot access external websites, including “techbooky.com,” to fetch the latest news for you. My knowledge is based on text data up to September 2021, and I’m unable to browse the internet.

While this feature is currently only available to paying users, it is however envisaged at least from the body language of Sam Altman that this would eventually come to non-paying users as well in the near future.

OpenAI is rolling out this browsing feature initially to Plus and Enterprise users, and it will soon be accessible to all. To activate it, users can simply choose “Browse with Bing” from the selector under GPT-4.

But that’s not all. OpenAI has been on a roll recently, unveiling a significant update that empowers ChatGPT to engage in voice conversations and interact using images. This leap brings ChatGPT closer to the likes of popular AI assistants such as Apple’s Siri.

OpenAI had previously experimented with a feature that allowed users to access real-time information through the Bing search engine, but this was part of their premium ChatGPT Plus offering. Unfortunately, it had to be disabled due to concerns that it might enable users to bypass paywalls.

ChatGPT’s remarkable ascent in popularity made it the fastest-growing consumer application in history, boasting a whopping 100 million monthly active users in January. However, it was eventually overtaken by Meta’s Threads app.

The surge in ChatGPT’s usage has sparked considerable investor interest in OpenAI. Reports suggest that the startup is currently in discussions with shareholders about selling existing shares at a substantially higher valuation than just a few months ago.

With these new developments, OpenAI continues to push the boundaries of AI technology, offering users a more immersive and interactive experience. As ChatGPT expands its horizons, it’s clear that the future of AI holds even more exciting possibilities.