Okay, so here’s the next big thing: The major tech companies are integrating AI chatbots into web browsers. Perplexity and Open-AI have created new browsers, while Google has integrated its Gemini chatbot into Chrome and Microsoft has integrated AI into its Edge browser via Copilot.
Since ChatGPT has become a constant companion, I resolved to download OpenAI’s ChatGPT Atlas browser and make it the default browser on my Mac.
It wasn’t an easy decision. I have a special fondness for the Safari web browser on my Mac because it’s been my window onto the world for years. But I was eager to write about Atlas and curious what it could do. I’m finding it has fascinating capabilities.
Chief among them is the ChatGPT sidebar. I was shopping for a new tennis racket and spoke my query in the main window. As usual, it understood my spoken query perfectly and returned a list of six rackets, each with a brief description and a link to where it can be purchased.
Here’s the cool part: clicking on a link automatically opens the ChatGPT sidebar and immediately moves Atlas’s response to the resizable sidebar on the right of the browser window. The main window then shows the web page that’s selling the racket.
It’s so much more convenient than having two windows or apps and going between them. You spend less time switching between tools.
Or, let’s say that I’m using the Atlas browser to read a long article and decide that I’d simply like a brief summary. I can click the Ask ChatGPT icon at top right to open the sidebar and ask ChatGPT for the main points.
The feature I was most eager to try when I first started using Atlas was its ability to dig into my web browsing history and answer any question about something I’ve read or summarize a particular article. Apple’s Safari can do a keyword search, but it’s extremely limited compared to the ability of Atlas to tell me anything I want to know about a web page I’ve visited.
As a browser, Atlas has a menu at the top similar to Google’s that lets you choose what to see related to your search term: general information, news, images, or videos. And as a chatbot, it also lets you access your history of interactions with ChatGPT by opening a panel on the left side of the Atlas window.
So what’s not to like? The big thing I miss is Safari’s Reader mode. Often, an article I’m reading on my iPad, Mac, or iPhone is so cluttered with ads and junk that it’s hard to read. Sometimes the text even jumps around as new, differently sized ads appear. Infuriating. In Safari, I can click on the Reader icon and everything immediately disappears except for the photos and text. It’s a much more satisfying and relaxing experience than having to deal with the distractions.
A few times in Atlas I’ve simply asked it to copy the text of the article I wanted to read and paste it into the sidebar. But it’s slower, not as well formatted, and doesn’t include the photos or images.
No matter. Atlas will likely get that feature. And Safari will likely get many of the features of Atlas. The fact is, AI is creeping into everything. I was surprised when I discovered that the search feature in the Photos app on my Apple devices uses AI when searching. I’ve labeled almost none of my photos, but found I could search for terms like “autumn leaves” or “deer” or “snow” and all the relevant photos appear.
But the Apple Intelligence technology is mostly inferior, especially as evidenced by Siri’s poor speech recognition compared to ChatGPT. I greatly prefer speaking to typing. But good news: Apple may soon be partnering with OpenAI and Google to incorporate state-of-the-art AI into Apple’s platform. Rumors say Apple may use Google’s Gemini to power an improved Siri and that GPT-5 will augment Apple Intelligence.
As I write this, Atlas is only available on the Mac. OpenAI says it’s coming soon to Windows, iPhone, iPad, and Android, perhaps by the time you read this.
And when Atlas comes to the iPhone and iPad, will that be goodbye to Safari forever? Nope. There are big advantages to staying on a single platform. I love how everything is in sync among my Apple devices. For example, when I add a bookmark on my iPad, it automatically appears on my iPhone and Mac.
Perhaps what I look forward to the most from Apple’s imminent AI upgrade is a Gmail-like feature that can summarize a long email thread or search my thousands of emails in Apple Mail for a particular email based not on exact keywords but on meaning.
Yep, that’s me. No matter how good it gets, I always want more.