ChatGPT Now Cites the Sources for Its Answers

While generative chatbots like ChatGPT offer a wealth of information on demand, a nagging doubt remains – is it factual or AI fabrication? This is where Microsoft Copilot shone, as it has cited source links for a long time. Now it looks like OpenAI is finally understanding the importance of citing sources.

The company announced in an X post on Friday, that ChatGPT will now include links to sources used in its responses. The post states, “This gives more context to its responses and makes it easier for users to discover content from publishers and creators”.

In the attached video, the answers include relevant links for the source at the end of the sentence. You can directly click on the link to visit the source site and browse more information on the topic. This will make it easier for you to verify the legitimacy of the provided response and learn more about the topic if needed.

However, there is a big catch here. This feature is only available on paid plans including ChatGPT Plus, Team, and Enterprise versions. That’s because these versions give you access to GPT-4 which can scrawl the internet for answers, unlike the free version. This is a huge bummer as most people wouldn’t be willing to pay extra for something as basic as citations.

Links to sources will be beneficial to both users like us and publishers who work hard to write such informative posts. Oddly, this is something that even Google didn’t think about much. Their Gemini chatbot also doesn’t mention sources aside from a few rare instances here and there.

Microsft’s Copilot scores full marks for offering links to sources in responses for free. At times, it might even give you a video link if it covers your query. What are your thoughts about OpenAI adding citations to ChatGPT? Let us know in the comments below.