OpenAI announced it is ending its AI‑powered browser service Atlas, which launched in October 2024 with ChatGPT integration. The company said it will incorporate some of Atlas’s agentic browsing capabilities into its ChatGPT desktop application and a Chrome extension that lets users query, summarize, and perform tasks on web pages. A cloud‑based browser running on OpenAI servers will also support agents that complete tasks on a user’s behalf through the desktop app.

The shutdown follows a broader review by OpenAI leadership, including applications chief Fidji Simo, who directed the team to reduce “side quests.” The decision coincides with earlier cuts to the company’s AI video‑generation project Sora.

The AI browser market has seen several rivals, including Perplexity’s Comet, The Browser Company’s Dia, and AI features added to Chrome and Edge by Google and Microsoft. OpenAI concluded that browser functionality is better positioned as a feature within existing applications rather than a standalone destination.

OpenAI’s new Chrome extension will give ChatGPT access to the current page context, enabling users to ask questions about web content, generate summaries, or start longer workflows without leaving the browser. A desktop version of ChatGPT will include a more capable browsing tool that allows site navigation, login, file downloads, and direct interaction with web pages. The cloud browser will serve as a remote workspace for AI agents.

The updates aim to make ChatGPT a continuous workspace that spans Chrome, the desktop app, and AI agents, positioning the tool against competitors such as Google’s Gemini Side Panel.