News
The Gist
- Welcome back, Mrs. Internet. OpenAI reintroduced the Web Browser plugin for ChatGPT on Sept. 27, enabling the AI to generate responses beyond its previous data cut-off and offer internet-based references.
- Bing in the spotlight again. The "Browse with Bing" feature is now available to ChatGPT Plus and Enterprise users, offering internet citations alongside the AI's responses, stemming from Microsoft's significant investment in OpenAI.
- Web Browser Plugin got three-month timeout. The plugin was initially disabled on July 3 due to content display concerns, but has been restored following user feedback and updates ensuring better website interaction and adherence to robots.txt directives.
Welcome back to the current day, ChatGPT. We missed you the last three months.
OpenAI shut down its Web Browser plugin that connected the generative AI chatbot to the internet in July. But it's back as of today, Sept. 27, according to a post on X from OpenAI.
This means the chatbot can produce results beyond its data-training knowledge cutoff of September 2021 and provide internet links to the current-day world in order to back up its findings with internet sources. (editor's reminder: internet sources are not always factual, either).
"Browse is rolling out to all Plus users," OpenAI's "Natalie" announced in a ChatGPT release note for Sept. 27. "ChatGPT can now browse the internet to provide you with current and authoritative information, complete with direct links to sources. It is no longer limited to data before September 2021."
How Do I Enable ChatGPT Browse With Bing Web Browser Plugin?
To try it out, first you must be a ChatGPT Plus user or Enterprise user. Plus costs $20 per month. Enterprise costs "contact sales." (OpenAI won't say publicly what it costs). To enable Browse in your beta features setting:
- Click on "Profile & Settings" (for the record, this editor's settings is labeled "Settings & Beta")
- Select "Beta features"
- Toggle on "Browse with Bing"
- Choose Browse with Bing in the selector under GPT-4.
You can also enable the feature by choosing "Browse with Bing" in the selector under GPT-4 on the ChatGPT home screen. Some ChatGPT Plus users may find it was automatically set up as such (like mine). With your Browse With Bing Web Browser plugin enabled, ChatGPT will produce internet citations with its findings via hyperlinked numbers that lead directly back to the website it used to produce answers.
Why Bing by the way? Don't forget about Microsoft's massive investment into OpenAI and ChatGPT.
ChatGPT can now browse the internet to provide you with current and authoritative information, complete with direct links to sources. It is no longer limited to data before September 2021. pic.twitter.com/pyj8a9HWkB
— OpenAI (@OpenAI) September 27, 2023
Why Did OpenAI Take Nearly 3 Months to Turn Web Browser Plugin Back On?
OpenAI in a post on X revealed that "since the original launch of browsing in May, we received useful feedback. Updates include following robots.txt and identifying user agents so sites can control how ChatGPT interacts with them. Browsing is particularly useful for tasks that require up-to-date information, such as helping you with technical research, trying to choose a bike, or planning a vacation."
Browsing is available to Plus and Enterprise users today, and OpenAI plans to expand to all users soon.
Related Article: OpenAI Disables ChatGPT Web Browser Plugin
Why Did OpenAI Shut Down ChatGPT Web Browser Plugin in First Place?
The creators of ChatGPT disabled the generative AI chatbot's web browser plugin that connects user queries to the Microsoft Bing search engine July 3 because the ChatGPT Web Browser plugin displays content "in ways we don't want" according to a July 3 post on X.
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ChatGPT users over the July 4 holiday weekend who expected to use the "Browse with Bing" beta plugin were likely surprised when the plugin for ChatGPT-4, the chatbot's paid Plus-version, disappeared from the usual drop-down screen. A pop-up on the lower righthand side of the ChatGPT-4 home screen said, "We've temporarily disabled the Browse with Bing Beta feature" and linked to a Help Center article that offered an explanation.
"ChatGPT Browse with Bing is a beta feature (available to ChatGPT Plus subscribers) that allows ChatGPT to search the internet to help answer questions that benefit from recent information," OpenAI's Michael Schade wrote in the help center article. "We have learned that the ChatGPT Browse beta can occasionally display content in ways we don't want. For example, if a user specifically asks for a URL's full text, it might inadvertently fulfill this request.As of July 3, 2023, we’ve disabled the Browse with Bing beta feature out of an abundance of caution while we fix this in order to do right by content owners. We are working to bring the beta back as quickly as possible, and appreciate your understanding!"
