Microsoft is launching an open project called NLWeb to simplify building AI-powered chatbots on the web. NLWeb allows websites to create a “conversational interface” with just a few lines of code, their choice of AI model, and their own data. For example, a retailer could use NLWeb to create a chatbot to help users choose clothing for specific trips. Web pages built using NLWeb can make their content discoverable and accessible to AI platforms that support MCP, Anthropic’s standard for connecting AI models to data systems.
NLWeb is seen as playing a similar role to HTML for the agentic web, allowing users to interact directly with web content in a rich, semantic manner. It is speculated that NLWeb may have origins in tech from ChatGPT maker OpenAI, Microsoft’s close collaborator. OpenAI was previously working on NLWeb with partners like Condé Nast, Redfin, Eventbrite, and Priceline to bring ChatGPT-like conversational features to websites.
Now, NLWeb seems ready for prime time, possibly in a different form than originally envisioned by OpenAI.
