Anthropic has officially joined the race to integrate AI-powered web search, announcing its new feature on June 20. The tool, built on the Claude 3.7 Sonnet model, allows users to conduct web searches directly within the chatbot, delivering results with contextual information and search engine sources.
You can enable the feature in your profile settings. Instead of receiving a list of links, the AI tool provides summarised responses with references, making it easier to find relevant information without switching between search engines and chatbots. Initially, this feature is available to paid users in the U.S., with plans for a broader rollout.
Keeping up with AI-powered search tools
Anthropic’s latest move is a more significant trend in AI-driven search technology. OpenAI launched a similar feature for ChatGPT in late 2024, first offering it to paid subscribers before expanding access to all users. While OpenAI leads the AI chatbot space, Anthropic has a strategic partnership with Google, which recently introduced an AI-powered search mode for Google One Premium customers.
Anthropic has positioned its web search tool as useful for various purposes, from researching industry trends to drafting grant proposals. According to VentureBeat, the feature can also help users with comparison shopping, providing detailed product insights based on real-time web data.
Before AI-powered web searches became available, you had to switch between search engines and chatbots to complete research. Now, AI chat tools integrate web results directly into responses, streamlining the process. This shift is expected to make information retrieval faster and more efficient for users.
AI search tools may impact traditional websites
However, some concerns have been raised about the rapid development of AI-driven search. Initially, OpenAI launched ChatGPT’s web search to compete with Google. In response, Google introduced AI Mode to keep up with OpenAI. Anthropic is entering the competition, further intensifying the AI search race.
While these AI-driven search tools improve convenience, they could also impact traditional websites. According to Android Headlines, AI-powered searches prioritise summarised responses over direct website links. As a result, search engines now favour results from AI tools like Perplexity, ChatGPT Search, and AI Overviews over traditional websites.
A recent study found that AI search engines send 96% less traffic to news sites than Google Search. This is likely because AI summarises key information, reducing the need for users to click on external links. As AI-powered search continues to evolve, the future of traditional web traffic remains uncertain.
