SearchGPT began as OpenAI’s prototype web search that delivered timely answers with clear sources; the best parts now power ChatGPT search for all users.
ChatGPT search uses third‑party search providers and partner content to answer queries and show links, so you don’t have to leave the conversation.
This article demystifies how it works, the SearchGPT Source Logic framework, and what brands should do to earn citations across AI search (GEO/AEO) and classic SEO.
What is SearchGPT?
SearchGPT was a temporary prototype that combined OpenAI’s models with the live web to give fast, timely answers with clear, relevant sources.
OpenAI later integrated the best of it into ChatGPT—what you use today as ChatGPT search (see SearchGPT prototype and ChatGPT search announcement).
ChatGPT search is available on web and apps, and may partner with other search providers to retrieve web results.
How SearchGPT/ChatGPT search chooses and shows sources
Where results come from (official)
- Third‑party search providers + publisher partners. ChatGPT search leverages third‑party providers and partner content to find and present information (see ChatGPT search announcement).
- Citations vs. consulted sources. In the developer docs, the web‑search tool returns a full list of URLs consulted (the
sourcesfield), while the UI attaches inline citations only to the most relevant references (see web‑search tool docs). - Other data inputs (advanced use). For deeper research, models can combine web search with file search/vector stores or remote MCP servers, optionally using code for analysis (see deep research guide and tools overview).
What the UI shows (official)
ChatGPT search returns an answer with links to the web sources so you can inspect them directly. You can trigger search automatically (based on your question) or manually via the search icon (see the Help Center article).
Note: OpenAI hasn’t published a ranking algorithm for which sources appear as citations. The next section outlines practical signals inferred from official behavior and tooling docs.
SearchGPT Source Logic (framework)
A pragmatic, AI‑first framework for making your content discoverable, usable, and cite‑worthy in ChatGPT search.
- Discoverability
- Reach via third‑party search providers and partner pipelines (see ChatGPT search announcement).
- Enterprise/app contexts: Connectors and File search can expose your own sources inside ChatGPT (see Connectors in ChatGPT and file search tool).
- Retrieval & Pooling (inferred)
- The system builds a pool of candidate pages from provider results and partner feeds; the developer
sourceslist shows everything consulted—not just the final citations (see web‑search: sources list).
- The system builds a pool of candidate pages from provider results and partner feeds; the developer
- Vetting signals (inferred, GEO/AEO‑relevant)
- Topical relevance & intent match.
- Freshness/timeliness for evolving topics (search is invoked to get up‑to‑date information) (see web‑search overview).
- Provenance & primary sources (official docs, partners) (see ChatGPT search announcement).
- Corroboration across multiple independent sources (reflected in consulted sources vs a smaller set of citations) (see web‑search docs).
- Machine‑readable evidence (clean tables, definitions, IDs) that’s easy to quote.
- Synthesis & Answering
- The model composes a short answer and attaches citations so users can verify claims (see Help Center article).
- Presentation & follow‑ups
- Users can open sources and ask follow‑ups; the system may perform additional searches as needed (see Help Center article).
Practical example (real question)
Query: “What is o1 and how is it used for deeper research?”
What you’ll see: ChatGPT search returns a concise definition and links to relevant OpenAI pages; if you ask for methods or tooling, it may add the deep‑research and web‑search docs so you can audit how multi‑step research works.
GEO/AEO for SearchGPT & ChatGPT search
Focus on being the easiest source to cite:
- Evidence near claims. Put a source link inside the exact sentence that makes a non‑obvious claim, then mirror it in a short Sources section.
- Entity precision + definitions. Disambiguate names and include short, quotable definitions.
- Tables & structured data. Provide clean HTML tables and valid JSON‑LD; this helps AI search and Google rich‑result eligibility (see structured data guidelines).
- Recency & change logs. Show “last reviewed” and what changed.
- Author/org identity. Clear author pages, About/Contact/Policies.
- Answer blocks & follow‑ups. Start sections with a 1‑sentence answer, then add likely follow‑ups.
Classic SEO you still need
Your Google visibility still depends on Search Essentials (crawlability, indexability, helpful content) and correctly implemented structured data (see Search Essentials and intro to structured data).
AI search doesn’t replace these foundations; it rewards pages that are machine‑verifiable and easy to cite.
FAQs
Is SearchGPT still separate from ChatGPT?
No—the prototype informed ChatGPT search, which integrates those capabilities into ChatGPT itself (see ChatGPT search announcement).
Who supplies the web results?
OpenAI says ChatGPT search leverages third‑party search providers and partner content (see ChatGPT search announcement and the Help Center article).
Why do I see only a few citations?
Because citations are the most relevant references attached to the final answer; developers can see the full consulted list via the sources field (see web‑search docs).
Can my own data show up in ChatGPT search?
Yes in enterprise/app contexts via Connectors and, for developers, File search or remote MCP servers (see Connectors in ChatGPT, file search tool, and the deep research guide).
How do I optimize content to be cited?
Make claims verifiable with inline evidence, resolve entities, keep pages fresh, and use valid schema; these steps help both ChatGPT search and Google (see structured data guidelines and Search Essentials).
SearchGPT paved the way for ChatGPT search, where answers come with auditable links.
Brands that win make pages easy to verify: short answers, inline evidence next to claims, clean tables, and valid schema—on top of solid SEO.
Launch Tacmind to put this into practice:
- Spin up an AI Visibility Dashboard to track inclusion and citation share across ChatGPT search and Google AI features.
- Use the Claim‑to‑Citation Builder to turn key claims into answer boxes, tables with units, and proper inline sources.
- Keep schema and entities flawless with our validators and freshness cues (last‑reviewed logs, change notes).
Start in self‑serve mode: connect your site and see your first citation scorecards fast—no sales call required. Ready to turn your pages into citation magnets? Try Tacmind now.
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