Exclusive: OpenAI Set to Launch AI-Powered Web Browser to Rival Google Chrome

OpenAI is preparing to introduce a new AI-driven web browser in the coming weeks, directly challenging Google’s dominant Chrome browser, according to three individuals familiar with the development. The browser is expected to redefine how users navigate the internet by embedding artificial intelligence into the core browsing experience.

If widely adopted by ChatGPT’s 500 million weekly users, the browser could threaten a crucial aspect of Google’s ad revenue model. Chrome plays a key role in Alphabet’s business by collecting user data to optimize ad targeting and by directing search traffic to Google by default. OpenAI’s upcoming browser may disrupt this dynamic by retaining user interactions within a ChatGPT-like interface, limiting the need to click through to traditional web pages.

Sources say the new browser is a central element of OpenAI’s strategy to integrate its AI offerings across users’ personal and professional lives. The company did not provide a comment on the report, and the sources requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the information.

Founded by Sam Altman, OpenAI became a disruptive force in the tech world with the 2022 launch of ChatGPT. Facing growing competition from tech giants like Google and rising AI startups such as Anthropic, OpenAI is aggressively seeking new frontiers. In May, the company signaled its move into hardware, acquiring AI device startup io — founded by Apple’s former design chief Jony Ive — for $6.5 billion.

The AI-enabled browser will reportedly integrate OpenAI’s tools like Operator, allowing the browser to perform tasks such as booking appointments or filling out forms on behalf of users. Its access to user browsing behavior would give OpenAI a powerful base for deploying autonomous AI agents that interact with the web directly.

Despite these ambitions, OpenAI faces stiff competition. Google Chrome currently dominates the global browser market with a 66% share and more than 3 billion users. Apple’s Safari is a distant second with a 16% share, according to StatCounter. Other AI-focused browsers have already entered the market, including Comet by Perplexity and offerings from Brave and The Browser Company.

Chrome’s role in data collection for ad targeting has become so central to Google’s business that the U.S. Department of Justice has called for its divestiture, following a legal ruling last year declaring Google holds an illegal monopoly in search.

OpenAI’s new browser is being built on Chromium, the open-source framework behind Chrome and other browsers such as Microsoft Edge and Opera. Two of the sources confirmed that OpenAI has recruited former Google executives who were involved in Chrome’s initial development. Reports had previously suggested OpenAI was exploring a browser project.

In April, an OpenAI executive expressed interest in acquiring Chrome if regulators forced Alphabet to divest. Google has not offered Chrome for sale and intends to appeal the ruling.

Rather than building a plug-in or extension, OpenAI chose to develop a standalone browser to gain greater control over data collection and product integration, according to one source. This move aligns with the company’s long-term vision of embedding AI into everyday digital experiences at the infrastructure level.