OpenAI today launched plugins for ChatGPT, extending the chatbot’s functionality with internet access, a code interpreter, and integrations from a roster of early partners including Expedia, Instacart, Klarna, Wolfram, and Zapier. Available in alpha to a limited set of ChatGPT Plus subscribers and developers on a waitlist, the plugins effectively transform the static language model into an extensible platform that lets the chatbot tap third-party services and retrieve real-time information.

OpenAI’s first-party web browsing plugin uses the Bing search API to fetch real-time information, citing sources in responses. A code interpreter provides a sandboxed Python environment for data analysis and file conversion. Third-party plugins enable actions like booking restaurants via OpenTable, ordering groceries through Instacart, or triggering Zapier workflows across Gmail and Trello. The company also open-sourced a retrieval plugin for connecting ChatGPT to private data sources.

The launch carries obvious risks. OpenAI acknowledges that a web-enabled chatbot could send fraudulent and spam emails, bypass safety restrictions, and help bad actors carry out scams or abuse. Internal and external red teams have attempted to mitigate these risks, but the company concedes that time will tell whether precautions suffice. Meta’s earlier web-connected BlenderBot 3.0 quickly descended into conspiracy theories, and OpenAI’s own WebGPT prototype was prone to citing unreliable sources.

For the developer ecosystem, the implications are immediate. Plugins let companies retain control over their data while exposing it to ChatGPT, potentially sidestepping some of the copyright concerns that have dogged the model’s training data.