ChatGPT goes down days after search engine launches

Update at 11:35 a.m. ET: Issues with ChatGPT appear to have been resolved, the service is back to normal, and DownDetector indicates that reported errors have returned to average levels.

The ChatGPT service has been unreliable over the past few hours, with error messages appearing, particularly when trying to use the new search feature.

ChatGPT appeared to suffer an outage on Monday, just days after OpenAI integrated a search engine into the chatbot.

The website intermittently displayed a “404 Not Found” error message.

The DownDetector website also reported that “user reports indicate possible issues with OpenAI,” with graphs showing a sharp increase in the amount of bugs reported.

There have been no reported issues with the service on the OpenAI status page.

Launched last week, ChatGPT Search allows users to search the web for information via the AI ​​chatbot. Although ChatGPT has long provided the ability to search the Internet for current information, the new feature allows users to click an icon to search online instead of having to ask the AI ​​to do so.

The new search function also offers more comprehensive results than before, e.g. B. drawing restaurants on a map or showing photos of items you might purchase.

The search feature is currently only available to ChatGPT Plus subscribers who pay $20 per month to access the service.

ChatGPT down again?

ChatGPT’s latest bug is the first significant disruption the service has suffered in some time, if the OpenAI status page is accurate.

A major outage occurred on October 17, but it only lasted 12 minutes. Previously, the most recent incident occurred on September 20, when there was a partial outage lasting several hours.

ChatGPT experienced a number of issues in August, although OpenAI claims the chatbot had 99.84% uptime over the last 90 days.