Perplexity and OpenAI enter the browser wars: is Chrome doomed?
perplexity's comet and openai's atlas launch as ai-first browsers that perform autonomous tasks, signaling a shift from passive browsing to agent-based computing.
perplexity introduced comet, a browser for max subscribers that acts as a chatbot-based search engine and performs tasks like summarizing emails and sending invites, while openai released atlas on macos with 'agent mode' to complete web tasks autonomously. the browser company's dia reads visited pages to answer questions and summarize files, and opera's neon operates offline to research and write code. aside, a y combinator-backed startup, is building a browser-native automation tool that requires full access to passwords and history to manage tasks across gmail, notion, and banking platforms. this wave of 'agentic' browsers moves the industry beyond simple search to integrated executive assistants, creating intense competition for google chrome's market dominance.