OpenAI is preparing to launch a groundbreaking AI-powered browser that could disrupt Google Chrome’s dominance by integrating AI agents into web tasks and capturing valuable user data. (Source: Image by RR)

Built on Chromium, the New Browser Offers Familiarity with a Futuristic Twist

OpenAI, as noted in an article in reuters.com, is nearing the release of its own AI-powered web browser, designed to challenge Google Chrome’s long-standing dominance, according to insiders. The browser, expected to debut in the coming weeks, leverages OpenAI’s advanced artificial intelligence to change how users interact with the internet—focusing on conversational navigation, embedded AI agents, and minimizing the need to click through traditional websites.

By keeping more user interactions within a ChatGPT-style chat interface, OpenAI stands to gain direct access to vast amounts of user data—data that has been the cornerstone of Google’s advertising success. With 500 million weekly active ChatGPT users, OpenAI could rapidly gain traction and pose a serious threat to Google’s ad-based revenue model, which depends heavily on Chrome’s ability to funnel search traffic and track user activity.

Unlike traditional browsers, OpenAI’s tool will allow users to perform tasks like booking appointments, completing forms, and navigating the web through AI agents embedded directly in the browsing experience. Built atop Google’s own Chromium codebase, the browser would also enable seamless integration with OpenAI’s existing products like the Operator agent, continuing the company’s push to embed AI across work and personal environments.

OpenAI enters a highly competitive landscape where Chrome commands more than two-thirds of global browser share, dwarfing Apple’s Safari and others. Meanwhile, rivals like Perplexity (with its Comet browser), Brave, and The Browser Company are already fielding AI-powered browsers. By hiring former Google Chrome architects and exploring data autonomy through its own browser platform, OpenAI positions itself as a bold challenger in a domain central to Google’s power—and potentially its vulnerability, amid antitrust scrutiny.

read more at reuters.com