OpenAI's New AI Browser Shows the Future of the Internet. There's a Catch. -- Barrons.com

By Tae Kim

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Browser Wars. Hi everyone. It sure seems OpenAI wants to disrupt everything with artificial intelligence.

Last month, the start-up unveiled Sora, an AI-powered social media video app that still tops the download rankings on Apple's App Store. Now the company is targeting the web browser, a market Google has dominated with Chrome for over a decade.

On Tuesday, OpenAI unveiled its first AI-powered browser called ChatGPT Atlas. The new application offers a promising vision of where the internet is heading, though it may take more time to get there.

"A browser built with ChatGPT takes us closer to a true super-assistant that understands your world and helps you achieve your goals," OpenAI said in a blog post.

ChatGPT Atlas launched on Mac with versions for Windows, iOS, and Android coming shortly.

OpenAI said their browser will make ChatGPT functionality always available without the need to switch to a separate tab or copy-paste information. The application will know the informational context of the current website window and draw from prior conversations along with the user's browser history.

The browser's design language and user interface resembles Chrome. I can see how ChatGPT on the home screen or sidebar as the center of the web browsing experience with better personalization from past interactions will be useful with everything from helping draft better emails to answering queries.

But the most enticing part of the release is the browser's agentic capabilities called Agent mode, which allows users to ask the browser to complete multistep tasks such as booking a flight, shopping online, or performing data analysis. The browser then literally takes control of the screen to accomplish tasks for the user.

For instance, during a livestream demo, an OpenAI executive asked the browser to create an ingredient list for eight people based on the recipe shown on the current site window and then order the groceries on Instacart.

I tried Agent mode for myself at home. I downloaded Atlas and asked it to order Pad Thai on Uber Eats from my favorite local Thai restaurant. The browser eventually figured it out but struggled with various food options, clicking around the page, and sorting through pop-up ads. The whole exercise took several minutes to complete.

In its current state, it is too slow. I would rather just do it myself. But the potential is obvious. The main impediment is the browser analyzes each page based from taking image screenshots and tries to figure out where to click on each site's interface.

From what I saw, I'm convinced agentic and AI browsers are the future, but the current iteration feels a bit like when I first tried America Online to use the internet over dial-up modems. I'm confident it will get better. It might take a year to be useful. The AI models and algorithms will improve, and the GPUs that power the agentic computation will become more powerful.

Of course, the big gorilla in the space isn't going to stand still, either. According to Statcounter, Google Chrome has 72% share of the browser market. There is little doubt Chrome will start to aggressively integrate AI agent capabilities soon.

I'm looking forward to both Google and OpenAI battling it out in the coming years, giving users more capabilities and innovation.

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Write to Tae Kim at tae.kim@barrons.com or follow him on X at @firstadopter.

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October 22, 2025 14:41 ET (18:41 GMT)

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