OpenAI, Perplexity browsers present direct challenge to Google Chrome's dominance

AI companies seek to change how we use the web

OpenAI is preparing to launch a new AI-powered web browser that could significantly shake up the digital landscape dominated by Alphabet's Google Chrome.

Three people familiar with the company's plans told Reuters that the browser is expected to be released in the coming weeks. It will offer a radically different browsing experience by tightly integrating AI into its core functionality.

The tool will combine web navigation with a ChatGPT-style interface capable of executing tasks, answering queries and summarising content, potentially altering how users interact with the internet itself.

If adopted by even a fraction of ChatGPT's estimated 500 million weekly active users, OpenAI's browser could put substantial pressure on one of Google's most critical assets.

Chrome, with over 3 billion users and a 68% share of the global browser market (StatCounter, June 2025), plays a central role in Alphabet's advertising business by feeding user data into its highly profitable targeting algorithms.

AI agents at the core

Built on Chromium – the same open-source codebase that powers Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and Opera – OpenAI's new browser will feature advanced "agent" capabilities.

These agents can handle complex web-based tasks on behalf of users, such as filling out forms, booking reservations and conducting research within the browser.

Unlike typical browsers that shuttle users across pages, OpenAI's offering will keep many interactions within a conversational interface, effectively creating a browsing experience centred around the user's intent rather than web design or search result rankings.

The move would also grant OpenAI deeper access to valuable behavioural data, long a cornerstone of Google's success, fuelling its AI models and commercial ambitions across enterprise, consumer and hardware segments.

Chrome's dominance has long been a pillar of Google's advertising empire, which contributes nearly three-quarters of Alphabet's total revenue. The browser not only gathers user behaviour data but also directs search traffic to Google Search by default, an advantage the US Department of Justice has flagged as part of an ongoing antitrust lawsuit.

Last year, a federal judge ruled that Google holds an illegal monopoly in online search. While Google has vowed to appeal, regulators have floated the idea of breaking up Alphabet's control, potentially including a forced sale of Chrome.

In April, an OpenAI executive testified that the company would be interested in acquiring Chrome should it be made available under antitrust actions.

In the meantime, OpenAI has opted to build its own browser from scratch, reportedly hiring two veteran Google VPs who helped develop the original Chrome platform.

The browser is part of a broader push by OpenAI to weave its AI offerings – such as its upcoming "Operator" assistant – into every aspect of personal and professional life. In May, OpenAI acquired "io," a hardware startup founded by Apple's former design chief Jony Ive, in a $6.5 billion deal to develop AI-powered consumer devices.

Perplexity AI launches Comet browser

OpenAI isn't alone in challenging Google's grip on the web. On Wednesday, Nvidia-backed startup Perplexity AI entered the fray with the launch of Comet, a premium AI-powered browser that enables users to ask questions, summarise content, compare products and manage digital tasks within a single interface.

Comet is currently available to Perplexity Max subscribers at $200 per month, with broader rollout planned via invitation, according to Reuters.

Perplexity's browser is designed to offer AI-powered search and task execution while storing user data locally to protect privacy.

However, the company has faced backlash from media outlets and titles such as Forbes, Wired and News Corp for allegedly scraping content without consent, a controversy it hopes to quell through a new publisher partnership programme.

Meanwhile, other AI-centric browsers from companies like Brave and The Browser Company are also gaining traction with features like smart summarisation and context-aware search.