Web search and citations
How One searches the web on its own, cites its sources, and how to keep a message offline.
One can search the web while it answers. There's no switch to turn on: web search is always available, and One decides when to use it, for example for current events, prices, recent releases, or any question where it should cite a source.
How it works
When One decides to search, you'll see it working before the answer appears, with steps such as Reading results and Processing results. One searches, opens the most relevant pages, reads them, and then writes its answer from what it found.
Search results come from public web pages. One treats what it reads as information to evaluate, not as instructions to follow.
Citations
When an answer uses something One read on the web, it adds a citation marker next to the claim. Hover over a citation (or tap it) to see which page it came from, and select it to open the page.
Under the answer, a Sources panel lists the pages One used. Tabs such as All, Images, and News sort them by type, and +N sources shows the rest when there are many.
Image and video citations
Sometimes One cites an image or video it found in search results. Those citations link to the page the image or video came from, labeled with that page's title, so you can see it in context.
Ask One not to search
If you don't want One to use the web for a message, say so in the message. For example:
- "Don't search the web, just use what you know."
- "Do not browse. Use the attached document."
- "No web research needed."
For that message, One won't use web search or read web pages. It can still read files you've attached.
Tips for better results
- Be specific. "Electric car tax credits in the US for 2026" works better than "car credits."
- Ask for sources if you want them: "Include links to your sources."
- Open the cited pages for anything important. A citation shows where a claim came from, but you should still check that the page says what One says it does.
If search isn't working
Occasionally One can't reach search results. When that happens, there's no error message: the "Searched the web" indicator doesn't appear, the answer has no sources, and One answers from what it already knows. If you expected sources and got none, ask again or try later.