In a groundbreaking announcement, OpenAI in collaboration with Microsoft, has unveiled a significant enhancement to its AI language model ChatGPT.

The chatbot, previously constrained by a knowledge cutoff date of September 2021, can now browse the internet in real-time, providing users with the latest information and news

This development is poised to revolutionise how people seek information online.

The AI-powered system, which uses vast datasets to craft human-like responses, had long been criticized for its inability to consider recent events. Users were met with a "I'm sorry, but I cannot provide real-time information" response when asking about current affairs.

ChatGPT plus

However, this limitation is now history as premium users enrolled in ChatGPT's "Plus" and "Enterprise" plans can already benefit from the real-time internet access, with OpenAI planning to roll out the feature to all users in the near future.

Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, a professor of business psychology at University College London, highlighted the transformative potential of this upgrade: "Now, you can treat this as a source of the latest news, gossip, and current events."

However, he also cautioned about the accuracy of information, emphasizing the need for clear sourcing to prevent misinformation.

OpenAI under scrutiny

OpenAI has been under scrutiny from US regulators over concerns of ChatGPT generating false information. Earlier this year, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requested information on how OpenAI addresses risks to people's reputations, and the company's CEO pledged cooperation with the FTC.

The decision to enable real-time internet access for ChatGPT was not taken lightly. It required overcoming challenges related to computing costs, potential inaccuracies, and ethical concerns, particularly regarding copyrighted content.

This upgrade also leverages the power of Microsoft's Bing search engine to process user queries and extract relevant information from search results.

OpenAI has not disclosed a specific timeline for the feature's full rollout.

In addition to real-time internet access, OpenAI has announced its plans to introduce voice conversations with ChatGPT, further enhancing its capabilities.

These developments come amidst reports of OpenAI discussing a possible share sale, with the potential to value the company at up to $90 billion—a testament to the growing importance of AI in our digital world.