Glossary
OAI-SearchBot
OpenAI's crawler that surfaces and cites websites in ChatGPT search results — distinct from GPTBot (training) and ChatGPT-User (live fetches).
By Teeming Chew, Founder Last updated
OAI-SearchBot is the user-agent OpenAI uses to build and maintain the search index that powers ChatGPT's web-search answers. Allowing it is what makes a site eligible to be cited when ChatGPT browses the web for an answer.
How is OAI-SearchBot different from GPTBot?
GPTBot crawls content for model training. OAI-SearchBot crawls to populate ChatGPT's search results and citations. ChatGPT-User is a third agent that fetches a specific page in real time when a user's prompt requires it. To be cited by ChatGPT search, allow OAI-SearchBot; blocking GPTBot does not block search citation.
Should I allow OAI-SearchBot?
Yes, if you want ChatGPT to cite your pages. Blocking it removes you from ChatGPT's search citations even when your content is the best answer. It is allowed by default under a permissive User-agent: * robots.txt rule.
How do I verify OAI-SearchBot can reach my site?
Check that robots.txt does not disallow it (directly or via a * block), confirm pages return 200 to a non-browser user agent, and make sure server-side rendering exposes the content without requiring JavaScript.
Part of the Cite Hustle GEO glossary — definitions for generative engine optimization and AI search. See how it fits the bigger picture in the GEO methodology.