OpenAI has launched ChatGPT Atlas, a new AI-powered web browser built around its popular chatbot. Currently, the browser is available globally for macOS, with versions for Windows, iOS and Android coming soon.
Atlas brings ChatGPT into the browser itself. Users can open a ChatGPT sidebar in any tab to ask questions, summarise pages, compare products or analyse data. It also supports optional memory, allowing ChatGPT to recall what you’ve viewed or discussed before. You can, for instance, ask it to “find the job listings I looked at last week” or “summarise the news I read yesterday.”
A key feature is Agent Mode, which lets ChatGPT take action on your behalf. OpenAI demonstrated this with a recipe search that ended with the AI automatically purchasing ingredients on Instacart. The agent can research, plan trips or even complete online shopping from start to finish. Agent Mode is available to paid users on Plus, Pro and Business plans.
Reuters reports that Atlas is a direct challenge to Google Chrome, which currently dominates the global browser market with over 70% share. By combining browsing, search and AI assistance, OpenAI is positioning Atlas as a smarter alternative to traditional search. Analysts say the move could eventually shift ad spending away from Google if OpenAI begins selling ads in Atlas.
Atlas enters a growing field of AI-powered browsers, joining Perplexity’s Comet, Brave, and Opera’s Neon. But OpenAI’s advantage lies in its 800 million weekly ChatGPT users, giving it an immediate user base and large-scale data ecosystem.
OpenAI says browser memories are fully optional. Users can view, archive or delete them at any time, and decide which sites ChatGPT can or cannot see. By default, browsing data is not used to train OpenAI’s models unless users opt in. Agent Mode is restricted for safety. It cannot install extensions, run code or access local files, and it pauses when handling sensitive websites such as banking portals.
ChatGPT Atlas is now available on macOS for Free, Plus, Pro, Go and Business users. OpenAI says Atlas marks its next step towards an “AI-first” browsing experience, where ChatGPT becomes a constant assistant across the web.
