OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said Atlas is an AI-powered web browser built around ChatGPT. He believes it will let people talk with web pages.^[1] Altman suggested that a chatbot interface could replace the traditional URL bar. He noted that browser innovation has been slow since tabs became common.^[1] Ryan O'Rourke, the lead designer for Atlas, explained a key feature: a ChatGPT sidebar. Users can click an "Ask ChatGPT" button to activate it.^[1] This sidebar acts like ChatGPT but understands the web page a user is viewing.^[1][4] For example, users can ask questions about content they are reading or have the AI help draft emails.^[1][4][5] "It's basically you inviting ChatGPT into your corner of the internet," O'Rourke said in OpenAI's launch video.^[1] Atlas includes three main features: Chat, Memory, and Agent.^[4][2] The Chat feature allows users to summarize content, compare products, or analyze data from any site.^[4][5] The Memory function helps Atlas remember past conversations and browsing history. This makes the experience more personal over time.^[4][7] Users can ask questions like, "Find all the job postings I was looking at last week and create a summary of industry trends."^[4] Users can also use an incognito mode if they do not want the browser to save their memory.^[4] The Agent Mode allows ChatGPT to perform tasks for the user.^[4][5] This means the AI can research a trip, plan events, book appointments, or even order groceries.^[4][5][8][9] Sam Altman mentioned that Agent Mode is currently available only for ChatGPT Plus and Pro subscribers.^[1][4][9] Ben Goodger, a former Google vice-president now at OpenAI, leads the Atlas project.^[8] He shared his personal use, saying Atlas helps him "find better deals online, interpreting my personal health data, understanding my kids' homework and much more."^[8] ### Facing Strong Competition OpenAI's launch of Atlas intensifies the competition in the browser market. Google's Chrome browser has about 3 billion users worldwide.^[1] Google has also added AI features to Chrome using its Gemini AI technology.^[1][10] Microsoft's Edge browser integrates its Copilot AI.^[10] Perplexity AI also offers its own AI-powered browser called Comet.^[4][2][11] Comet provides AI-powered search results directly in the address bar.^[11][12] It allows users to summarize YouTube videos or ask follow-up questions.^[11] Other companies like Brave, Opera, and Mozilla are also adding more AI features to their browsers.^[10] OpenAI bases Atlas on Google's Chromium open-source project. This means it supports Chrome extensions.^[10] OpenAI wants people to set Atlas as their main browser. It offers increased ChatGPT usage limits for users who keep Atlas as their default browser for seven days.^[10] ### Privacy and Future Outlook The deep integration of AI in browsers like Atlas raises new questions about privacy and security. The "Browser memories" feature means ChatGPT "will remember facts and insights from your browsing."^[5] An OpenAI employee acknowledged potential privacy risks with the agent mode. The company promised the ChatGPT agent only works on browser tabs and does not access other computer files.^[4] However, security researchers have found vulnerabilities in other agentic AI browsers, like Perplexity's Comet.^[13][14] These vulnerabilities show how AI assistants could be tricked into taking unwanted actions.^[13][14] This highlights a new type of security challenge for AI-native browsers.^[13][14] OpenAI believes Atlas represents a "once-a-decade opportunity to rethink the browser," according to Sam Altman.^[2] The company aims to make the internet more interactive and intelligent.^[2] With Atlas, OpenAI is betting that the browser itself will drive the next big change for the internet.^[2] ---