In brief
- A plugin is an add-on that integrates ChatGPT's AI-powered chatbot with other applications.
- The first ChatGPT plugins launched included plugins for Expedia, Kayak, Shopify, Wolfram Alpha, and Zapier.
- ChatGPT plugins are rapidly expanding the AI space by bringing solutions to diverse fields like education, law, gaming, and content creation.
Plugins have become crucial in learning, understanding, and interacting with artificial intelligence. Thanks to the flexibility provided by OpenAI's ChatGPT, chatbots are appearing everywhere and becoming more nuanced.
What is a plugin?
A "ChatGPT plugin" is a software add-on developers design that integrates other applications into ChatGPT's AI chatbot, enabling features beyond what ChatGPT was initially designed to provide. These plugins manage the interaction between the application and the ChatGPT API.
OpenAI announced the first set of ChatGPT plugins in March. The small collection of plugins included Expedia, Kayak, Shopify, Wolfram (Wolfram Alpha), and Zapier. Currently, plugins are only available for ChatGPT Plus subscribers using GPT-4, the latest version of the popular chatbot.
How to install ChatGPT plugins
Subscribing to ChatGPT Plus gives users access to GPT-4, the most recent iteration of ChatGPT. When GPT-4 is selected, a drop-down will provide three options to proceed:
- Default
- Browse with Bing
- Plugins
In beta, the Browse with Bing and Plugins options allow users to play with features not found in the public GPT-3.5. To get started, select plugins. Another drop-down will appear: "No plugins enabled." Scroll down and select "Plugin store."
From here, the Plugin store will come up, and you can search through the entire list of available ChatGPT plugins. New plugins are released frequently.
This article will dive into 7 ChatGPT plugins available today that will help you begin taking advantage of these powerful extensions.
1. Kayak
One of the first to create a ChatGPT plugin, the popular travel website allows users to search for flights, hotels, and other arrangements from the ChatGPT interface. By asking questions as simple as, "How much does it cost to fly from NYC to LAX from August 21, 2023, until September 15, 2023," the chatbot will list options, including airlines, airports, times, and costs. The plugin will also provide links to the Kayak website for booking.
2. Wolfram Alpha
Some may argue that Wolfram Alpha did what ChatGPT does years before OpenAI was a twinkle in Sam Altman's eye. Still, Wolfram was one of the first to create a plugin for ChatGPT, bringing its computational skills to GPT-4. As with the web version, asking Wolfram Alpha a mathematical problem will generate an answer—but this time in ChatGPT's style.
3. AskYourPDF
AskYourPDF is a plugin that, once installed, allows users to ask questions related to a PDF link they provide. The plugin will give a summary of the PDF and, when asked specific questions, answer the question and give a page location for the information.
4. VoxScript
With VoxScript, users can generate summaries of web pages by URL. In the case of video links, the plugin will provide an overview and description of the video provided. In the case of videos, VoxScript will ask if the user wants it to continue describing the content of the video link after the first few seconds.
5. PlaylistAI
PlaylistAI creates a playlist on Spotify based on prompts given by the user. The plugin does require you to give access to Spotify before it can work. Entering a prompt like, "Create a playlist based on A Perfect Circle," the plugin will generate a list of songs by A Perfect Circle and similar bands. The plugin will then provide a link to the playlist on Spotify.
6. Horoscope
If you want to know what the stars have in store for you, the Horoscope GPT-4 plugin could help. After giving the chatbot a zodiac sign (or birthdate if unknown), Horoscope provides several layers of personal, health, travel, professional, and emotional guidance. The plugin can provide daily, weekly, or monthly readings.
7. ScholarAI
The ScholarAI plugin is designed around searching for academic and research papers. With ScholarAI, users can pull abstracts of scientific literature or full text with a URL to a PDF, and then search for specific sections of the PDF. Along with providing the desired information, ScholarAI will also provide links to books or other sources where relevant content can be found.
What other types of plugins are available?
The list of plugins in the ChatGPT plugin store has grown significantly since March, with over 400 plugins available to ChatGPT Plus subscribers. This eclectic mix of plugins ranges from blockchain analytics to weather predictions, text to image generators, bartending tutorials, financial data, and creating that perfect prompt for Midjourney.