OpenAI has officially entered the browser wars, launching its new AI-powered web browser, “ChatGPT Atlas,” on Tuesday. The move is a direct challenge to Google’s long-held dominance with Chrome and a clear sign that the battle for the future of the internet is heating up.
The new browser is built around OpenAI’s wildly popular ChatGPT. It features a special sidebar that lets you use the AI to summarize articles, compare products, or analyze data on any website you’re visiting. For paying subscribers, there’s also a powerful “agent mode” that can complete multi-step tasks for you, like researching and booking a trip, or even ordering all the ingredients for a recipe from Instacart.
The launch of Atlas is a major step in OpenAI’s plan to expand its reach beyond just a simple chatbot. By building its own browser, the company can collect valuable data on user behavior and position itself as a central hub for all online activities. This could also speed up the shift away from traditional keyword-based search, as more people turn to conversational AI for their information needs.
The news sent a shiver through Wall Street, with shares of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, falling nearly 2%. While Google has been working hard to integrate its own AI into Chrome, OpenAI’s new browser is the most direct threat yet to its most important product. As one analyst put it, a new browser from OpenAI could introduce fresh competition for the ad dollars that are the lifeblood of Google’s empire.
