OpenAI kills ChatGPT Atlas browser, shifts focus to existing tools

OpenAI product manager James Sun said the desktop browser ChatGPT Atlas will shut down on August 9. Its features will be integrated into other products, with more details shared via email and push notifications in the coming days. Previously, OpenAI's app business head Fidji Simo asked teams to cut "side projects," leading to the cancellation of the AI video tool Sora.

AI companies are pushing into the browser market. Perplexity launched Comet, The Browser Company released Dia, and Google and Microsoft added AI features to Chrome and Edge. OpenAI sees browsers as just a tool, not a final destination, so it's moving Atlas's agent-like abilities into familiar work environments.

OpenAI is building a ChatGPT extension for Chrome that grabs context from web pages, letting users ask questions and summarize without leaving the browser. It's also upgrading the ChatGPT desktop app with a better browser for direct web access, logins, and file downloads. Plus, OpenAI offers a cloud browser for ChatGPT agents to run tasks independently.