OpenAI Officially Announces Latest Update to Web Search Feature in ChatGPT

Source: Binary Mindset

OpenAI has officially announced the latest update to the web search feature in ChatGPT. Users can now receive personalized product recommendations, complete with images, user reviews, and direct links for online purchases. The announcement was released on Monday, April 28, 2025.

This launch marks a significant milestone in the advancement of generative AI in the world of e-commerce, transforming ChatGPT from a simple information search tool into a smart shopping assistant tailored to each user’s needs.

Available to All Users

This new feature is available in GPT-4o, OpenAI’s latest AI model, which is now the default model in ChatGPT. Interestingly, all users — including those on the Free, Plus, and Pro versions — can access this feature, even without logging into their accounts.

With this update, ChatGPT can provide product suggestions across various popular categories, such as:

• Clothing and fashion

• Beauty and personal care

• Home appliances

• Electronics and gadgets

For instance, by typing a question like “What’s the best vacuum cleaner under 2 million rupiah?”, users will receive recommendations based on structured metadata from various sources, including pricing, product specifications, and user reviews.

Ad-Free and Commission-Free

Unlike conventional search engines that often show results based on paid ads, OpenAI emphasizes that all search results in ChatGPT are organic. The company also confirms that it does not receive commissions from purchases made through these product recommendations.

A Challenger to Google?

This feature is believed to be part of OpenAI’s strategy to compete with Google’s dominance in search. With an ad-free approach and a more personalized user experience, ChatGPT emerges as a more efficient and distraction-free alternative for product searches.

As this capability grows, ChatGPT’s popularity continues to soar. OpenAI representatives mentioned that as of February, the platform had recorded over 400 million weekly active users. In the past week alone, ChatGPT’s web search feature was used in more than 1 billion queries, reflecting strong enthusiasm for interactive and functional AI usage.