Is The New Web Browsing in ChatGPT Any Good?

The AI Advantage
30 Sept 202310:00

TLDRThe video explores the reintroduction of internet browsing capabilities in Chat GPT, initially available in May 2023 but then disappeared. With the relaunch in September, Chat GPT Plus users gain access to Bing browsing. The video compares the new feature to its previous version, noting changes in interaction with robots.txt and the browsing indicator. Despite improvements in the underlying model, the browsing function appears less reliable, with many websites restricting access. The host recommends using the Web Pilot plugin for more consistent results and advises viewers to experiment with Bing browsing but not to rely on it for in-depth data.

Takeaways

  • 🌐 Chat GPT now has internet access for GPT 4 users, which was temporarily unavailable but has been re-enabled at the end of September 2023.
  • 🔍 To use the new web browsing feature, users need a Chat GPT Plus account and can enable it through the settings, under beta features.
  • 🛠️ The browsing feature has undergone changes under the hood, with updates to how Chat GPT interacts with robots.txt files, allowing website owners to control bot interactions.
  • 🔒 Website owners can now manage how Chat GPT accesses their sites, which was a response to the previous issue where the crawler accessed restricted areas.
  • 📝 The new browsing feature requires more specific prompts from users to initiate internet searches, unlike the previous version.
  • 🔄 Users may need to attempt prompts multiple times to successfully trigger the browsing function, indicating a less reliable user experience.
  • 📉 The results from the new browsing feature seem to be more generic and less detailed compared to the version from May 2023.
  • 📈 Custom instructions can improve the quality of responses, but the browsing feature still may not be utilized effectively.
  • 📑 The browsing feature struggles with tasks that require accessing specific external data, such as creating tailored advertising campaigns.
  • 🤖 The new model of Chat GPT is more action-oriented and step-by-step in its approach, which is different from the immediate response model of GPT 4.
  • 🚫 Many websites have blocked Chat GPT from accessing them, which limits the effectiveness of the browsing feature.

Q & A

  • What recent feature did ChatGPT re-enable for GPT-4 users?

    -ChatGPT re-enabled internet access with browsing capabilities for GPT-4 users.

  • When was the initial release of browsing with Bing, and why was it discontinued?

    -Browsing with Bing was initially released in May 2023, but it was discontinued after a month because their crawler accessed parts of websites it wasn't supposed to, including behind paywalls.

  • How can users enable the new browsing feature in ChatGPT?

    -Users can enable the new browsing feature by going to settings, selecting beta features, and then enabling browsing with Bing.

  • What changes have been made to the browsing feature under the hood?

    -The browsing feature now shows a step-by-step preview of the browsing process and has updated interactions with robots.txt files, allowing website owners more control over how ChatGPT interacts with their sites.

  • What issue did the speaker encounter when using ChatGPT to create an advertising campaign?

    -The speaker found that ChatGPT did not use browsing to gather information from the provided URL and had to be more specific with the prompt to get it to work. Even then, the results were often generic and not as in-depth as before.

  • How did the performance of ChatGPT's browsing feature compare to Web Pilot in terms of gathering information for an interview simulation?

    -Web Pilot worked better than ChatGPT's browsing feature, as it successfully gathered data from the Microsoft website and the job description, while ChatGPT's browsing feature often ignored the browsing step or failed to gather the necessary details.

  • What recommendation does the speaker make for users who want reliable data from websites?

    -The speaker recommends copying the content from the website directly into ChatGPT instead of relying on the browsing feature, as this method provides more controlled and reliable results.

  • Why does the speaker believe the browsing feature is not yet reliable?

    -The speaker believes the browsing feature is not reliable because it often fails to access the required information, doesn't show the steps taken during browsing, and many websites block ChatGPT from accessing their content.

  • What does the speaker suggest doing instead of relying on the browsing feature for productive results?

    -The speaker suggests manually copying and pasting the necessary information into ChatGPT to ensure productive results.

  • What is the speaker's overall assessment of the new browsing feature?

    -The speaker's overall assessment is that the new browsing feature is a weaker version of what was available in the spring, with many limitations and less reliability.

Outlines

00:00

🌐 Chat GPT's Internet Access Revamped

The video script discusses the re-introduction of Chat GPT's internet browsing feature, which was initially released in May 2023 but disappeared after a month. The feature, now re-enabled at the end of September, is available to Chat GPT Plus users. The script outlines the steps to access this feature, which involves going to settings, enabling beta features, and then browsing with Bing. It also mentions that while the feature is marketed as a significant update, similar capabilities were previously available through Bing and the Web Pilot plugin, albeit with less reliability. The script further explains the changes made to the robots.txt file interaction, allowing website owners to control how Chat GPT accesses their sites. The video aims to compare the new version with the one from May and assess the improvements and use cases.

05:00

🔍 Testing Chat GPT's Enhanced Browsing Capabilities

The second paragraph of the script focuses on testing the new browsing capabilities of Chat GPT, specifically its ability to create an advertising campaign using Bing browsing. The script describes the process of using a prompt with a link to gather context from a website. It highlights the need for more specific prompts to trigger the browsing feature and notes the changes in the browsing indicator, which now shows each step taken as a preview. The script also discusses the challenges faced with accessing certain details and the inconsistency in the results, suggesting that the feature may not be as reliable or detailed as expected. It further explores the use of custom instructions to tailor the browsing experience and compares the outcomes with those from May, concluding that while the underlying language model may have improved, the browsing function appears to be less effective than before.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Internet Access

Internet Access in the context of this video refers to the capability of Chat GPT to browse the internet and access information. This feature was initially rolled out in May 2023 and then re-enabled at the end of September 2023. It is a significant update as it allows Chat GPT to gather real-time data and provide more accurate responses. The video discusses the changes and improvements in this feature, highlighting its importance in enhancing the user experience.

💡Chat GPT Plus

Chat GPT Plus is a premium account service mentioned in the video that grants users access to enhanced features, including internet browsing capabilities. The script emphasizes that this new browsing feature is initially available only to Chat GPT Plus subscribers, indicating a tiered access model that differentiates between basic and premium users.

💡Bing

Bing is referenced as the search engine integrated with Chat GPT's browsing feature. The video compares the browsing capabilities of Chat GPT with Bing in May and the new version in September, noting differences in functionality and reliability. Bing's role is crucial as it provides the search functionality that Chat GPT uses to access and retrieve information from the internet.

💡Web Pilot

Web Pilot is a plugin mentioned in the video that serves a similar function to the new Bing browsing feature. It allows users to search the internet and retrieve information, but the video suggests that it is not as reliable as the new Bing browsing. The script discusses the comparison between Web Pilot and Bing browsing, indicating a preference for the latter in certain scenarios.

💡Robots.txt

The robots.txt file is a standard used by websites to indicate how search engine crawlers should interact with their content. In the video, it is mentioned that Chat GPT's interaction with this file has been updated, allowing website owners to control how Chat GPT accesses their site. This is significant as it addresses previous issues where the crawler accessed restricted areas of websites.

💡Advertising Campaign

The video script includes a test where Chat GPT is prompted to create an advertising campaign for an AI course. This serves as an example of how the new browsing feature can be utilized to gather context from a website and generate content. The effectiveness of this feature is evaluated based on the quality and relevance of the generated campaign.

💡YouTube Content Creators

In another test mentioned in the video, Chat GPT is tasked with crafting a message to reach out to AI-focused YouTube content creators. This demonstrates the potential of the browsing feature to access and analyze data from external sources like YouTube to inform its responses. The video evaluates the success of this task based on the accuracy and relevance of the information retrieved.

💡Custom Instructions

Custom Instructions are a feature in Chat GPT that allows users to tailor the AI's responses to their specific needs. The video discusses the impact of using custom instructions on the browsing feature, noting that it can lead to more tailored and in-depth responses. This highlights the importance of user customization in enhancing the effectiveness of Chat GPT.

💡Interview Preparation

The video includes a scenario where Chat GPT is used as an interview coach, simulating a high-level interview for a digital marketing analyst position. This use case demonstrates how the browsing feature can access job descriptions and company information to prepare relevant interview questions, showcasing the potential of Chat GPT in professional settings.

💡Web Search

Web Search is a critical aspect of the new browsing feature, as it enables Chat GPT to access and analyze data from the internet. The video discusses the reliability and effectiveness of this search functionality, comparing it to other tools like Web Pilot. The script evaluates the browsing feature based on its ability to retrieve accurate and relevant information from web sources.

Highlights

ChatGPT has re-enabled internet access for GPT-4 users at the end of September 2023.

The new browsing feature with Bing allows users to access the internet through ChatGPT Plus.

Changes have been made to how ChatGPT interacts with websites' robots.txt files, respecting site restrictions.

The browsing indicator now shows each step that ChatGPT is taking during the browsing process.

A key use case tested is creating an advertising campaign using Bing browsing, comparing results from May to the new version.

The new version of Bing browsing required more specific prompts to access the internet for relevant information.

Despite multiple attempts, the new version did not always provide the detailed, tailored results desired.

Custom instructions can improve the specificity and relevance of the output.

The new browsing model appears to be more action-oriented, but less reliable for certain tasks.

In a research task to find AI YouTubers, the new browsing failed to accurately access real-time data from YouTube.

Web Pilot, a plugin for internet browsing, performed better than the new Bing browsing for accessing specific website content.

The browsing feature can read and gather data from websites but is not always reliable for in-depth searches.

For job interview preparation, using direct input from job descriptions and company websites yielded better results than relying on Bing browsing.

Many websites have restricted ChatGPT’s access to their content, affecting the browsing functionality.

The new Bing browsing feature is seen as a surface-level search tool rather than a deep data retrieval solution.

Recommendation: For accurate results, copy-pasting relevant content into ChatGPT is more effective than using the current browsing feature.

Web Pilot remains a more reliable alternative to Bing browsing for internet access within ChatGPT.

The announcement highlights a more action-oriented underlying GPT model, despite the browsing feature's limitations.

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