An OpenAI employee has claimed that Google internally developed a ChatGPT-like conversational AI nearly a year before OpenAI launched ChatGPT in November 2022 but chose not to release it publicly.

The claim was made by Thibault "Tibo" Sottiaux, a former Google AI engineer who now works at OpenAI. According to him, Google's internal chatbot was ready well before ChatGPT entered the market, but concerns over business disruption and AI safety delayed its launch.

Former Google Engineer Makes the Claim

The discussion began on X after AI engineer Cheng Lou referenced an earlier interview in which Google executive Jeff Dean had suggested the company already possessed chatbot technology before ChatGPT.

Responding to the post, Sottiaux wrote:

"I was part of that team. Basically ChatGPT one year before it came out. Called LMChat and then another codename."

According to him, Google had already built a capable conversational AI but never introduced it to the public.

Why Google Allegedly Didn't Release It

Sottiaux claimed Google's leadership was concerned that launching a conversational AI chatbot could disrupt its core search business.

He further alleged that teams within Google DeepMind were prevented from shipping products that might compete with Google's traditional search model.

According to him:

"Google was too nervous to release it and DeepMind was blocked from shipping products that could disrupt Google."

These comments reflect Sottiaux's personal account and have not been independently confirmed by Google.

Google's Early Leadership in AI

Long before ChatGPT's launch, Google was widely regarded as one of the global leaders in artificial intelligence research.

The company developed the Transformer architecture through its landmark 2017 research paper "Attention Is All You Need." The Transformer model became the foundation for modern large language models, including GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer).

Google also developed advanced AI models such as:

• LaMDA
• PaLM
• Meena

Many of these technologies remained internal or were released in limited forms before the company later introduced Bard, which was eventually replaced by Gemini.

Google Previously Cited Safety Concerns

Around the time ChatGPT was launched, Google executives, including CEO Sundar Pichai and chief scientist Jeff Dean, acknowledged that Google possessed similar AI capabilities.

However, they maintained that releasing such technology required greater caution because users expect high accuracy from Google products.

One major concern involved AI "hallucinations," where chatbots generate incorrect or fabricated information with confidence—a challenge that continues to affect AI systems today.

ChatGPT Changed the AI Race

OpenAI released ChatGPT in November 2022, rapidly transforming the AI industry.

The chatbot:

• Reached 1 million users within five days.
• Crossed 100 million users within two months.
• Today serves approximately 1 billion monthly active users, according to the report.

Google responded by accelerating its AI roadmap, launching Bard before rebranding and expanding its AI offerings under Gemini.

Today, Google, OpenAI and Anthropic remain among the leading companies developing frontier AI models.

No Official Confirmation From Google

Google has not publicly confirmed Sottiaux's claims regarding the existence of an unreleased chatbot known as LMChat or any internal decision to withhold its launch.

The comments represent the perspective of a former employee and have reignited discussions about whether Google could have led the generative AI revolution had it commercialised its chatbot earlier.

Key Highlights

• OpenAI employee Thibault "Tibo" Sottiaux claims Google built a ChatGPT-like chatbot before OpenAI launched ChatGPT.
• The internal chatbot was reportedly known as LMChat.
• Sottiaux alleges Google chose not to release it due to concerns about disrupting its search business.
• Google previously said it prioritised AI safety and reducing hallucinations before releasing conversational AI.
• Google later introduced Bard, which evolved into Gemini.
• The company has not officially confirmed the former employee's claims.

FAQs

Did Google have ChatGPT before OpenAI?

According to former Google AI engineer and current OpenAI employee Thibault Sottiaux, Google had developed a ChatGPT-like internal chatbot before OpenAI launched ChatGPT. Google has not confirmed this claim.

What was Google's internal chatbot reportedly called?

Sottiaux said the chatbot was internally known as LMChat, followed by another codename.

Why didn't Google allegedly release the chatbot?

Sottiaux claimed Google was concerned the product could disrupt its search business and that leadership exercised caution over its release.

What AI models did Google develop before ChatGPT?

Before ChatGPT, Google introduced several advanced AI models, including Meena, LaMDA, and PaLM, while also pioneering the Transformer architecture that underpins modern large language models.