It’s not just search engines and chatbots getting AI makeovers these days. Web browsers want in on the revolution.
Opera, the company behind the web browser, unveiled a new update, Browser Operator, at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Monday that automates tasks for users. In what’s believed to be the first agentic AI web browser, the company said in a tweet it is “previewing a browser AI agent that gets shit done for you.”
“Browser Operator takes AI out of the chatbot and integrates it directly into the browsing flow,” the company said in a blog post. “This aligns with the broader role of the browser: it’s there to make you more powerful while you’re online, browsing the web, and to give you the tools to use your time more effectively.”
With Browser Operator, users can explain what they need it to do in natural language. For example, they can ask it to buy a 10-pack of size 12 white tennis socks from Nike, and it will handle the transaction.
Agentic AI is in the spotlight
It’s part of a greater effort among tech companies to push forward with agentic AI, a buzzy term that refers to AI systems capable of autonomously executing complicated and multi-step tasks.
Opera said its AI agent differs from other agentic browsing experiments because it uses native solutions and eliminates the need for screenshots or video capture of browsing sessions. The company said the approach prioritizes privacy by keeping user data stored locally on the device.
The browser is available as a preview release but will launch soon as part of its AI feature drop program. While this may be a first for browsers, companies continue to roll out agentic AI. Announced in early February and expanded to more users last week, OpenAI’s Deep Research tool is an AI agent that leverages reasoning-based capabilities to analyze vast amounts of information and tackle complex tasks. The company said it can accomplish in minutes what would take a human several hours.
Meanwhile, Microsoft last week introduced Magma, a new artificial intelligence model designed to help robots understand and act more intelligently. Unlike traditional AI models, Magma processes different types of data simultaneously, an effort Microsoft called a major leap toward agentic AI, where robots can plan and execute tasks on a user’s behalf.
‘Major innovation for browsers’
Reece Hayden, an analyst at tech intelligence firm ABI Research, said agentic AI is widely viewed as the next step in generative AI, particularly as search engines like Google start to integrate large-language models into their processes. But he sees the integration of agentic AI browsers like Opera as a factor that will revolutionize the user experience and drive traction in the long run.
“This will be seen as a major innovation for browsers as consumers will be able to book holidays autonomously or perform other use cases,” Hayden said. “Another reason this is significant is that it offers smartphones new use cases that justify on-device AI, which may support shipment growth.”
Although Hayden said he expects more search engines and browsers to test similar options, “enormous risks” around data privacy, accuracy and control still exist, he noted. “All players need to be careful given the [potential for] reputational damage,” he said.
