⚡ Get All Content for 20% Off ⚡

ChatGPT Just Got a Game-Changing Update — Here's What to Know It could be a risky one too.

By Amanda Breen

entrepreneur daily
SOPA Images | Getty Images

Google's Bard and Microsoft's new Bing have battled it out with OpenAI's ChatGPT for the spotlight in recent months, but the original AI contender just got a powerful update.

Until last week, ChatGPT pulled its information from training data ending around September 2021. But OpenAI's just-launched plugins allow the bot to access third-party knowledge sources and databases — including the web, TechCrunch reported.

Related: ChatGPT: What Is It and How Does It Work? | Entrepreneur

OpenAI will first prioritize a select number of developers and subscribers to its premium ChatGPT Plus plan before introducing larger-scale and API access, according to the company's site.

Of course, giving a chatbot web access doesn't come without some risk: WebGPT, an experimental system created in 2021 by OpenAI, at times quoted unreliable sources and drew from sites it anticipated users would find credible — whether they actually were or not.

Additionally, the update is another step in the direction toward a potential upending of traditional search engines like Google — which declared a "code red" upon ChatGPT's release, The New York Times reported.

Related: How Can Marketers Use ChatGPT? Here Are the Top 11 Uses.

Other companies like Expedia, Instacart, Kayak, Klarna, Spotify, Slack, OpenTable and Zapier have also rolled out plug-ins for ChatGPT; Zapier is a standout for its ability to complete a variety of productivity tasks via connections with apps like Google Sheets and Trello, per TechCrunch.

Amanda Breen

Entrepreneur Staff

Senior Features Writer

Amanda Breen is a senior features writer at Entrepreneur.com. She is a graduate of Barnard College and received an MFA in writing at Columbia University, where she was a news fellow for the School of the Arts.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

The Remote Side Hustle a 43-Year-Old Musician Works on for 1 Hour a Day Earns Nearly $3,000 a Month: 'All From the Comfort of Home'

Sam Ziegler wanted to supplement his income as a professional drummer — then his tech skills and desire to help people came together.

Leadership

Former Interrogator Shares 5 Behaviors Liars Exhibit and How to Handle Them

Five deceptive behaviors to look for and how to respond to those behaviors when you encounter them.

Marketing

Ever Wonder Why Certain Websites Rank Higher Than Yours? This SEO Expert Reveals The Secret to Dominating Search Results

It's often the smart use of SEO, now supercharged with AI, particularly in keyword optimization.

Business News

AI Is Impacting Jobs. Here Are the Gigs Affected the Most, According to an Analysis of 5 Million Upwork Postings

The researcher said in the report that freelance jobs were analyzed first because that market will likely see AI's immediate impact.

Business Ideas

55 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.