OpenAI announced the launch of its web browser, ChatGPT Atlas, today. It’s initially available for macOS only, with other platforms to follow. According to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, the product represents “a rare once-in-a-decade opportunity to rethink what a browser can be.” The launch places OpenAI in direct competition with established players like Google Chrome and emerging AI-focused browsers.
The core of Atlas is of course its deep integration with ChatGPT. The new tab page presents a familiar chat prompt, encouraging users to ask questions rather than just typing URLs. The chat interface can act as a persistent companion, appearing in a split-screen view alongside websites. This allows users to ask questions about the content on the current page without needing to copy and paste text. According to a report by The Verge, a feature called “cursor chat” allows users to select text on a page, for example in an email, and have ChatGPT edit it in-line.
Key Features
Browser Memories
Atlas introduces a feature called “browser memories,” which allows ChatGPT to retain context from websites the user visits. OpenAI states this can be used to ask questions that span multiple browsing sessions, such as, “Find all the job postings I was looking at last week and create a summary of industry trends.” The company emphasizes that this feature is optional and user-controlled. Users can view, archive, or delete memories and browsing history. However, initial testing by VentureBeat found the feature to be “hit or miss,” as it failed to recall a frequently searched topic from imported browser history.
Agent Mode
A key feature is “agent mode”, available in preview for paying subscribers of ChatGPT Plus, Pro, and Business. In this mode, ChatGPT can perform multi-step tasks on the user’s behalf. OpenAI’s announcement provides examples such as planning a dinner party by finding a recipe, creating a grocery list, and adding the items to an online shopping cart.
During a live demonstration, OpenAI staff showed the agent navigating websites but opted not to complete a purchase. The company states the agent will pause and ask for confirmation before taking actions on sensitive sites, such as financial institutions. According to Simon Willison, the user experience can feel slow, comparing it to “watching a first-time computer user painstakingly learn to use a mouse for the first time.”
Security, Privacy, and Expert Concerns
OpenAI’s launch materials detail several privacy controls. Users can prevent ChatGPT from seeing specific pages using a toggle in the address bar, use an incognito mode that doesn’t save activity, and must opt-in to allow their browsing data to be used for model training.
For agent mode, OpenAI lists specific safeguards, stating the agent cannot run code, download files, access the computer’s file system, or use saved passwords. Despite these measures, the company acknowledges that the agent “still carries risk,” including making mistakes or being susceptible to malicious instructions hidden on web pages, a technique known as prompt injection.
This risk was a central point of concern for some experts. Simon Willison described the security and privacy risks as feeling “insurmountably high,” stating he would not trust such products until they have undergone thorough security research. He noted that OpenAI’s main defense appears to be “expecting the user to carefully watch what agent mode is doing at all times!”
Market Context and Technical Details
The launch of Atlas is seen by publications like The Verge and VentureBeat as OpenAI’s “first volley in the AI browser wars.” The move challenges Google’s dominance with Chrome, which is also integrating its Gemini AI more deeply. It also competes with other AI-native browsers like Perplexity’s Comet, which offers similar features. VentureBeat commented that Atlas “does not exactly reinvent the wheel,” pointing out its familiar interface that combines the ChatGPT look with a traditional tabbed browser structure.
One technical detail highlighted by Simon Willison is that Atlas uses ARIA tags to understand the structure of web pages. These are the same accessibility tags used by screen readers to help visually impaired users navigate the web. This suggests that making websites accessible also improves their compatibility with AI agents. Willison also noted that the browser’s user-agent string is identical to that of Google Chrome on macOS, meaning it identifies itself as Chrome to websites.
ChatGPT Atlas is available globally for macOS for all user tiers (Free, Plus, Pro, Go). It is in beta for Business, Enterprise, and Edu customers. OpenAI has announced that versions for Windows, iOS, and Android are “coming soon.”
Sources: OpenAI, Simon Willison, The Verge, VentureBeat
