AI search platforms
OpenAI said in February 2026 that ChatGPT had reached 900 million weekly active users. When someone asks it for a plumber, a cleaning company or a law firm, ChatGPT can search the web, read pages and cite its sources. Here is how that works, how it differs from Google and the other assistants, and what a local business should do about it.
Short answer
ChatGPT turns a question into one or more searches, sends them to outside search providers, reads pages through OpenAI’s OAI-SearchBot crawler and cites what it used. To be considered, allow OAI-SearchBot to reach your site, publish clear pages about your services and service area, and keep your reputation consistent on the listing and review sites it reads.
Get Found · Get Leads · Grow
Get Found
We make sure OAI-SearchBot can reach your site, publish service and service-area pages that answer the specific questions people ask ChatGPT, and keep your business details consistent on the listing and review sites it reads.
Get Leads
Every page ChatGPT might cite gets a clear next step: text, call or a short form. We tag ChatGPT visits in your analytics so you can see the calls and leads they bring.
Grow
Each month we ask ChatGPT the questions your customers ask, see how it describes you, fix what is missing or wrong and build on the pages that get cited.
How it works
ChatGPT search launched in October 2024 and has been open to everyone, logged in or not, since February 2025. OpenAI’s own documentation describes the basic pipeline.
OpenAI says ChatGPT “typically rewrites your query into one or more targeted queries” and sends them to search providers. If the user has Memory turned on, ChatGPT may also use what it remembers about them to sharpen those searches.
OpenAI says it uses third-party search providers plus content supplied directly by partners. It does not publicly name its general web search providers. Its OAI-SearchBot crawler is what OpenAI uses to surface websites in ChatGPT search.
Answers can include inline citations and a Sources panel. ChatGPT estimates a user’s general area from their IP address, or uses precise location if they turn it on. On mobile it can show a map. For restaurant reservations it names OpenTable, Resy and Yelp as partners.
What makes it different
OpenAI runs separate bots. OAI-SearchBot powers search. GPTBot collects content that may be used for model training. ChatGPT-User fetches pages when a person asks ChatGPT to look at something. OpenAI says the settings are independent, so you can block training without leaving search. If you block OAI-SearchBot, your pages will not be shown in ChatGPT search answers.
Google has Business Profile and Bing has Bing Places. ChatGPT has no business listing you can claim. It builds its picture of your business from your website, search results and third-party sites, so consistency across the web matters more here than almost anywhere else.
People ask ChatGPT long, specific questions, like “Who can fix a leaking water heater in Smyrna this weekend and is licensed?” Pages that answer specific questions directly, with your service area, hours and credentials stated in plain text, give ChatGPT more to work with than a page of slogans.
In January 2026, OpenAI announced it would start testing ads for U.S. adults on the Free and Go tiers. They appear as promoted offers alongside answers. OpenAI has not said ads change which sources the answers cite, and there is no way to buy a citation.
Checklist
How MarketPros helps
No one can guarantee a mention in ChatGPT. OpenAI says so itself. What we can do is remove the obstacles and give the assistant clear, trustworthy material to cite.
We check crawler access, structure your pages around real customer questions and add structured data that matches your content.
AEO services →We clean up your listings and citations so your business details match everywhere ChatGPT might look.
Local AEO and SEO →We set up analytics so you can see visits from ChatGPT and other assistants, and what those visitors do next.
Analytics and tracking →FAQ
No. OpenAI says GPTBot is for training and OAI-SearchBot is for search, and the two settings are independent. Blocking OAI-SearchBot is what keeps your pages out of ChatGPT search answers.
Not today. ChatGPT has no equivalent of Google Business Profile. It relies on your website, search providers and third-party sites, so keep those accurate and consistent.
OpenAI says it uses third-party search providers but does not name them in its help documentation. Strong visibility in the major search engines is still a sensible foundation.
No. OpenAI says there is no way to guarantee top placement. The ads it began testing in 2026 are promoted offers shown separately from the answer.
Next step
Curious what ChatGPT says about your business today? Text (404) 877-2184 to set up a Zoom discovery meeting, or request a free visibility review.
Sources
Last reviewed October 23, 2026 by Don Stormo, founder of MarketPros.AI.
