CarGurus and Edmunds introduce ChatGPT plug-ins

Two online car shopping websites are tapping artificial intelligence technology to enhance the consumer vehicle search experience.

U.S. car shopping resource Edmunds and research and shopping website CarGurus both announced Monday separate versions of a ChatGPT plug-in to assist consumers looking for a new vehicle.

ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence chatbot designed to produce human-like conversational interactions. The automotive industry is increasingly using generative AI tools, as seen with Carvana's AI-generated video histories and General Motors exploring using ChatGPT in new vehicles.

The Edmunds ChatGPT plug-in helps consumers in their car purchasing decisions by offering access to original expert vehicle reviews and local inventory. It is available now to all ChatGPT Plus users in the ChatGPT plug-in store under the name "Edmunds Cars."

Once the Edmunds plug-in is enabled, users can converse with ChatGPT as usual. When a car shopper asks a question better handled by Edmunds' real-time data, ChatGPT will call on the plug-in to give a more complete and accurate answer.

"The benefit of using ChatGPT is twofold: it is an incredibly powerful large language model and has an active user base. OpenAI is one of the fastest growing consumer applications in history and provides Edmunds an opportunity to meet shoppers where they are starting their car searching journey," Nick Gorton, Edmunds' chief innovation officer, told Automotive News.

CarGurus created a ChatGPT plug-in that allows users to ask broad questions about the automotive products they are interested in and get results of the most relevant cars available to their search. The plug-in can gather data from a large selection of both new- and used-vehicle listings.

CarGurus has previously expanded into AI on its site, utilizing machine learning algorithms. For example, AI technology supports the platform's vehicle recommendation engine and its Instant Market Value tool, according to a CarGurus statement.

"We're excited by the opportunities at hand in the conversational search arena, and we're balancing our work in this space with a focus on testing and refinement to provide users with an experience that is as consistent as possible," Matt Quinn, chief technology officer at CarGurus, told Automotive News. "We're analyzing use of the plugin and plan to update the design and adapt along with OpenAI's own systems."