SISTRIX reports that ChatGPT is triggering live web searches far less often for people who use the app without logging in.
In daily spot-checks over the last two weeks, the share of answers that called the web fell from above 15% to below 2.5%. SISTRIX does not assign a cause and notes the observation applies to anonymous sessions.
What Changed
SISTRIX says it “analyses numerous ChatGPT responses to a wide variety of prompts” each day and recently “noticed that ChatGPT uses web searches significantly less frequently.”
It adds that, “at least when using the app without an account,” the measured rate of responses completed via a web search declined sharply in the period reviewed.
SISTRIX doesn’t publish a sample size, list of prompts, or detection method in the post.
SISTRIX also writes that ChatGPT has “traditionally” relied on Bing for web lookups and references rumors of Google data being used, but it doesn’t claim a direct link between any specific backend change and the measured decline.
Related Context
Microsoft Bing Search APIs Retirement
Microsoft announced that the Bing Search APIs were retired on August 11.
Some third-party tools have migrated to alternatives. This doesn’t prove a change inside ChatGPT, but it’s a relevant ecosystem shift.
Google’s SERP Access Changes
SISTRIX separately documented that Google no longer supports the “num=100” parameter and now returns 10 results per request, increasing the effort required to collect SERP data at scale.
Again, this is context rather than causation.
Recent ChatGPT Product Notes
OpenAI’s release notes list “improvements to search in ChatGPT” on September 16, without detailing backend sourcing.
That update may be unrelated to the SISTRIX measurement, but is worth noting in the same timeframe.
Why This Matters
If ChatGPT is consulting the web less frequently in anonymous sessions, you might notice fewer answers citing current sources and a greater reliance on the model’s internal knowledge for those users.
This could influence how often recent news is referenced in responses for users who aren’t logged in, although the behavior may differ for Plus or Enterprise accounts.
Looking Ahead
SISTRIX’s observation is limited to a specific time frame and anonymous usage. Currently, there’s no confirmed information from OpenAI about how frequently ChatGPT performs live lookups overall, and SISTRIX hasn’t provided a reason for the recent drop.
The most cautious conclusion is that one independent measurement showed a sharp short-term decline, which deserves further testing.
Featured Image: matakeris.creative/Shutterstock
