Reddit Inc. introduced a new AI-powered chatbot feature named Reddit Answers, aiming to improve the search experience for its users. The social media company is working to keep users engaged by simplifying access to over 1 billion posts and discussions on its platform. Reddit Answers will assist users in finding information, making recommendations, and surfacing relevant forum discussions.
The initiative is part of Reddit’s broader investment in enhancing its search capabilities to compete with traditional search engines and AI companies that summarize web content. Previously, users often turned to third-party search engines like Google (NASDAQ:), adding “Reddit” to their queries to find posts on the site. In fact, “Reddit” ranked as the sixth-most searched word on Google in the US this year.
To counter external AI tools summarizing its content without directing traffic back to Reddit, the company has started to block certain search engines from accessing its forums unless they enter commercial agreements. Reddit has already established licensing deals with Google and OpenAI, allowing summaries of its posts to appear in search results and ChatGPT, with agreements worth $203 million over the next two to three years.
The new chatbot, powered by AI models from Reddit, OpenAI, and Google, is part of a growing trend among social networks to include chatbots to maintain user engagement. For example, Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:). integrated a Meta AI chatbot across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, boasting 600 million monthly users. Other companies like Elon Musk’s X with its Grok chatbot and Snapchat have also adopted similar AI features.
Reddit Answers is initially rolling out to a select group of users in the US on the web and iOS platforms. The company plans to expand the chatbot’s availability to more languages and locations in the future. This conversational tool is designed to provide users with quick, curated summaries of related content, offering a more direct and efficient way to navigate the vast array of discussions on Reddit.
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