The short answer
ChatGPT search is the feature that lets ChatGPT look up current information on the web and cite the sources it used. OpenAI uses OAI-SearchBot to index pages for it. ChatGPT-User only fetches a page when a user asks, and OpenAI says it is not used to decide whether your content appears in search.
Updated Oct 18 2026
Why ChatGPT Search matters
It is where many buyers now start research. Whether your pages are fetched depends on your robots rules and on being indexed.
How to measure or use it
Run your question panel with search on, log the cited sources, and look for OAI-SearchBot and ChatGPT-User in your logs.
How I handle it
I check that OAI-SearchBot is allowed, since that is what decides search visibility, and that the pages I want cited load fully without scripts.
Related terms
ChatGPT Search questions
Is ChatGPT search the same as training?
No. Training and search use different bots, which OpenAI documents separately, so you can treat them differently.
How do I check what ChatGPT says about me?
Ask it your buyer questions with search on, several times, and record the answers and the sources shown.