You look things up all day: whether your shampoo can go in your carry-on, how long leftovers can sit out, which bus gets you from the airport to Union Station, which monitor works with your laptop, what the latest jobs report said. A search gives you links. You open a few, compare them, and decide which one to trust.
AI assistants now offer to skip that step: you ask, and they answer in seconds. We tested whether one can replace the search. We gave each AI personal assistant in this review the same 252 lookup tasks: ChatGPT dots, Grok Bot, Instinct and Meta's Muse. The tasks cover six kinds of lookup: quick facts, everyday errands such as connections and opening hours, product comparisons, recent news, longer analysis of public reports, and specialist research. Most ask about the live web and expect sources; the rest hand the assistant a fixed set of records and test whether it stays inside them. All questions were in English and set mostly in the US, with a few in the UK; prices were in US dollars. We scored each first answer, then the answer to one fixed follow-up asking the assistant to recheck itself.
Yes, it is pretty reliable. When you ask, the answer is usually right: each task's four required points were met in at least 94% of every assistant's answers, and on that part of the score every assistant reached 97.6 or more out of 100. Most of the time you will read the answer and act on it without opening the sources, and for everyday lookups the facts held up well enough for that. When you do want to check, ChatGPT dots, Grok Bot and Instinct make it easy: their sources checked out in 249 of 252, 245 of 249 and 242 of 252 answers. Muse's facts were about as reliable, but its sources checked out in 146 of 251, so its answers are harder to verify. Overall, ChatGPT dots scores 99.4 out of 100, Instinct 96.1, Grok Bot 93.5 and Muse 89.0. ChatGPT dots met all nine of our checks, from the facts and sources to leading with the answer and keeping it short, in 236 of its 252 answers; Instinct did in 168, Grok Bot in 135 and Muse in 70.
We did not test Google itself: the question is whether an assistant's answer is right often enough that you would not need to search. These are results from one run on unequal plans and conversation histories. ChatGPT dots ran on ChatGPT Pro, Grok Bot on X Premium, Muse on Meta's free plan, and Instinct over WhatsApp with no plan shown. ChatGPT dots, Grok Bot and Instinct kept every task in one conversation; Muse started a new chat for each. The results can't separate product capability from those conditions. Grok Bot gave no answer on 3 tasks, when the bot could not be reached, and Muse on 1. A second part of this test, in which each assistant keeps watch on four things for a week, will be added to this review as an update and may change the scores (how we are testing it).
Overall ranking · score out of 100
dots leads; Muse trails on sourcing
Solid dot: the total, out of 100. Hollow marks: three of its four parts, scored yes or no on every answer.
TotalCorrectTrustworthyUsable
- Total = 40 Correct + 30 Trustworthy + 20 Usable + 10 Second try, averaged over 12 equal panels (6 task types, live web and controlled). Second try is 97.6–99.8 for every assistant and is not drawn.
- The axis starts at 60.
- Plans differ: ChatGPT Pro, X Premium, Meta’s free plan for Muse; Instinct shows no plan.
- Red marks the best result on each measure; ties are marked equally.
Does it get the facts right?
Mostly, yes. Each task had four required points written before testing, such as the four details of a USB-C answer: what the plug does and does not tell you about speed, charging and video. Each of those points was met in at least 94% of every assistant's answers. On the Correct part of the score, ChatGPT dots reached 99.7, Grok Bot 98.5, Muse 97.9 and Instinct 97.6.
The one serious mistake came in an errand plan. Given a timetable and asked which bus and train would reach Port by 19:10, Grok Bot opened with "Take the 18:15 bus to Central, then the 18:45 train", a connection the 8-minute transfer walk rules out, and corrected itself only further down. We count an opening recommendation that fails a hard constraint as a critical error, and the answer scores 0: you act on the headline. Grok Bot also gave no answer on 3 tasks, and Muse on 1. Grok Bot showed "Couldn't reach this bot" on 3 tasks within 90 minutes on 19 Oct; on two, our test rule then in force did not let us press its Retry button.
Can you check where the answer came from?
Sourcing separated the assistants most. An answer passed this check only if it cited the sources the task asked for, each with a link or a specific title and section, and each saying what the answer claimed. ChatGPT dots' sources checked out in 249 of 252 answers, Grok Bot's in 245 of 249 and Instinct's in 242 of 252. Muse's checked out in 146 of 251.
Muse's facts were usually right, but it often did not show where they came from. Its USB-C answer was correct and complete, and it attributed its points to the USB-IF's connector specification, but it gave no link or exact title. On a news task about NASA's Ingenuity helicopter, it named only "NASA JPL's January 25 release". On quick-fact questions the gap is widest: Muse's sources checked out in 13 of 72. Muse also missed the honesty check in 70 of 251 answers: it stated specifics it gave no source for without saying they were unverified, or said it had read or checked pages the run record doesn't show. The others missed it in at most 14.
Sourcing · answers whose sources check out
Muse’s sources check out in 58% of its answers; the others are at 96% or more
One dot per assistant: share of its answers that cite the sources the question asks for, each with a usable locator that supports the claim.
- Listed alphabetically, not ranked.
- A usable locator is a link, or a specific title with a section, page or paragraph. A source named with neither does not count.
- Red marks the best result on each measure; ties are marked equally.
Does it get to the point?
Two checks measure whether an answer is easy to use: whether its first two sentences give the answer, and whether it is concise. Concise means within the task's word limit, with nothing a third of the length could lose without losing what was asked: no built-in self-check, no table repeating the text, no long source dump.
Grok Bot is the long writer. Only 151 of its 249 answers were concise, and on comparisons and news only 12 and 11 of 36. On an evidence briefing that asked for about 500 words, it ran to 1,417, with a 19-row evidence table and a long caveats section. ChatGPT dots was concise in all 252 answers.
Instinct and Muse are more likely to bury the answer. Instinct led with the answer in 208 of 252 answers, and in specialist research only 13 of 36. Asked for an HTTP retry policy, it opened with "Retry policy memo. Sources I read in full text…", and on a NASA heat-shield summary with "Source used:". Muse led with the answer in 186 of 251, and in research in 11 of 36. ChatGPT dots and Grok Bot led with the answer in 241 answers each.
Which kinds of task trip it up?
ChatGPT dots met every check in at least 30 of every 36 answers in each task type. The others vary more. Grok Bot met every check in 11 of 36 comparisons and 11 of 36 news answers, mostly because of length. Instinct did so in 12 of 36 research tasks, mostly by not leading with the answer, and Muse in 10 of 72 quick facts, mostly on sourcing.
Answers that met every check · by task type
dots met every check most often in every task type
One square per first answer: filled if it met all nine checks with no critical error.
Met every checkMissed at least one check, or no answer
| Assistant | Facts72 cases | Errands36 cases | Comparisons36 cases | News36 cases | Analysis36 cases | Research36 cases |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dots | Live webControlled 64/72Best | Live webControlled 35/36Best | Live webControlled 35/36Best | Live webControlled 36/36Best | Live webControlled 36/36Best | Live webControlled 30/36Best |
| Grok Bot | Live webControlled 54/72 | Live webControlled 17/36 | Live webControlled 11/36 | Live webControlled 11/36 | Live webControlled 23/36 | Live webControlled 19/36 |
| Instinct | Live webControlled 56/72 | Live webControlled 28/36 | Live webControlled 28/36 | Live webControlled 19/36 | Live webControlled 25/36 | Live webControlled 12/36 |
| Muse | Live webControlled 10/72 | Live webControlled 9/36 | Live webControlled 11/36 | Live webControlled 18/36 | Live webControlled 14/36 | Live webControlled 8/36 |
- Listed alphabetically, not ranked. The nine checks: the case’s four required points, sources that check out, the right version and date, honesty about limits, answer first and concise.
- Red marks the best result on each measure; ties are marked equally.
| Task (cases each) | ChatGPT dots | Grok Bot | Instinct | Muse |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Facts (72) | 98.9 | 94.8 | 97.1 | 83.0 |
| Errands (36) | 99.4 | 89.4 | 97.0 | 84.9 |
| Comparisons (36) | 99.7 | 91.6 | 96.7 | 87.4 |
| News (36) | 100.0 | 91.5 | 94.0 | 87.9 |
| Analysis (36) | 100.0 | 95.6 | 95.4 | 90.2 |
| Research (36) | 98.3 | 94.8 | 92.0 | 90.0 |
Cells show each assistant's average score out of 100 on that task type.
Does asking it to recheck help?
Rarely. After every first answer we sent the same follow-up, asking the assistant to recheck its answer against the request and its sources and correct anything wrong. On the four required points, the rechecked answers scored 97.6 to 99.8 for every assistant, about the same as the first answers. Grok Bot's recheck of the bus-and-train plan did fix it: "Recommending the 18:15 bus with the 18:45 train was wrong." That fix earns nothing in the score, because the first answer already counts 0.
So, can it replace your Google search?
Yes, it is pretty reliable for everyday lookups. Start with ChatGPT dots: it met every check in 236 of 252 answers and is near the top on every part of the score. We tested it on ChatGPT Pro, at a recorded USD 200 a month, and did not test cheaper ChatGPT plans. Instinct is the closest alternative at 96.1: accurate and well sourced, but you may have to read past a preamble to find the answer, especially on research. The Instinct account we used did not say who provides it, so check that you can reach the same product before relying on this comparison. Grok Bot is accurate and sources well, but expect long answers, and read the whole answer before you act: its one critical error was a failing plan put first.
Muse, on Meta's free plan, got the facts right about as often as the others, but often didn't show a source you could check; we did not test a paid tier. If you like to confirm an answer before you act, that is harder with Muse.
Whichever you use, check a plan with times or connections against the details before you go: that is where the one serious mistake came. For anything with more at stake, ask it for the page it used.
Method and where the evidence stops
Each assistant ran in its own product: ChatGPT dots on ChatGPT Pro, on a team member's everyday account with memory off; Grok Bot on X Premium (USD 15 during our test, with USD 30 a month scheduled at renewal on that account), on a dedicated account with personalization off; Instinct over WhatsApp, where no plan is shown, on a team member's personal number in a thread that already held earlier chats; and Muse on Meta's free plan, on a team member's personal account reset before testing. ChatGPT dots, Grok Bot and Instinct each answered every task in one conversation, so their answers are not independent of each other; Muse opened a new chat for each task. None of them showed which model answered, so the results describe each product as it ran on 19 Oct and 20 Oct 2026. Each task ran once. Booking, buying or sending anything on your behalf, other plans, repeated runs, questions in other languages and whether each assistant is available in your country are not covered in this review.
Every answer was scored yes or no on nine questions, and the recheck on the task's four required points again. The score weights four parts: Correct (the four required points) 40, Trustworthy (sources, version and date, honesty) 30, Usable (answer first, concise) 20 and Second try 10. A critical error or a missing answer scores 0. Each of the 6 task types, on the live web and in the controlled set, is one panel, and an assistant's total is the plain average of its 12 panel scores. Equal weights, more weight on correctness, or no weight on the recheck all leave the order unchanged, and so does dropping the unit-conversion case whose test key has a documented defect: Muse then scores 89.7 and the others are unchanged. Answers were scored blind, with product names hidden; the full method describes the scoring, its review and the one documented key defect.
How we test personal AI assistants, in full
This review received no sponsorship of any kind.
Commercial relationships. analyst.ai has no commercial relationship with any product reviewed here: no sponsorship, paid placement, affiliate links, or vendor-provided accounts or credits.
Data. The tables behind this review (every first answer with each yes-or-no check and its score, panel scores, and overall and part scores) are available to download from this page. Selected answers are quoted above; the full set of originals will be added to the evidence pack.
Corrections. Spot an error? Our corrections log and how to report one: analyst.ai/corrections.
Sources
The records below will be added to the evidence pack.
- Every first answer, one row per assistant and task, with each yes-or-no check, any critical error and its score (the per-answer download on this page).
- Panel, part and overall scores for each assistant (the score downloads on this page).
- The answer keys: four required checks per task, written before testing and rewritten as yes-or-no questions before scoring, and the sources each key was checked against.
- Each assistant's run records from 19 and 20 October 2026: the prompt sent, the full reply, the recheck reply, screenshots and the pages it cited.
- The scoring decisions, including the settled disagreements between the two scorers and the editor's decisions on earlier disputed answers.