OpenAI grants ChatGPT full access to the entire internet

OpenAI’s widely acclaimed chatbot now possesses the freedom to explore even the most obscure corners of the internet. The company officially announced on Tuesday the launch of the “Browse with Bing” feature for subscribers of ChatGPT’s Plus or Enterprise editions. This enhancement empowers ChatGPT to access real-time data, surpassing the limitations of the training data that previously only extended until September 2021.

While several plugins and applications have enabled ChatGPT’s internet access, this release signifies OpenAI’s confidence in the AI’s ethical boundaries to navigate through both the positive and negative aspects of online content. The feature is accessible on both web and mobile platforms for users subscribed to the $20 monthly plan. Notably, ChatGPT is already integrated into Microsoft’s Bing browser, facilitating significant collaboration between the two entities.

In line with this collaboration, OpenAI has integrated its latest AI image generator, DALL-E 3, with ChatGPT. This integration allows users to create deepfakes and playful art directly through the chatbot’s user interface.

Microsoft initially introduced this feature in its beta phase during the annual Microsoft Build conference in May. However, OpenAI temporarily halted the Browse with Bing feature, citing concerns about unwanted content presentation. Speculations suggest the pause might have been influenced by users finding ways to bypass the paywall.

It wasn’t until September that OpenAI re-introduced Browse with Bing, incorporating new speech-to-text capabilities, enabling paying users to interact with the chatbot through voice commands. ChatGPT can now synthesize responses using an AI-generated voice and interpret images to provide relevant answers to users’ inquiries.