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Forbes
20 hours ago
- Forbes
Are Browsers Key To An Agentic AI Future? Opera, Perplexity Think So
AI-powered conversational search engine Perplexity is in the news for offering to buy Google's Chrome browser for $34.5 billion. But in December of 2024, Perplexity considered buying The Browser Co. And just months ago, Perplexity reportedly offered to buy Brave, the privacy-focused browser, for about $1 billion. Why does Perplexity want a web browser so badly? Possibly because a browser just might be key to our agentic AI future. I recently interviewed Opera senior product leader Henrik Lexow on my TechFirst podcast. Opera, the 30-year-old browser company that pioneered tabbed browsing, pop-up blocking, and ad blockers, has about 300 million active users globally. This year, Opera was the first to bring AI agents right into our browsers in a project called Opera Neon. 'The agentic browser … is that sort of the new operating system?' Lexow asked during the podcast. 'It's a big question.' Regardless of where the browser goes, Opera's pretty sure about the future of the internet itself. That's a huge shift, by the way. An agentic internet would be a massive and fundamental change from a user-driven internet to an agent-driven version. In a user-driven internet, you search, you see results, you make selections, you click links, you fill out forms, you book flights, and you buy products. In a sense, you are the agent. In an agentic internet, you tell something – maybe your agentic browser – to do those things for you. Except you don't say search, look, select, and buy; you say buy me more of the underwear I got six months ago. The agent then consults its memory, forms a plan, takes multiple steps, and handles it all: from which underwear you bought, and where you bought them, to finding the same ones online (and maybe checking around for better prices), to adding them to cart, to checking out … and reporting back to you with the results. The agent – in this case potentially an agentic browser – is therefore essentially a personal assistant, a force multiplier. But will an agentic browser be the main way we engage with agents? Perplexity seems to think it's pretty important, given the company's persistent and repeated but so far unfruitful attempt to buy a browser. Opera certainly thinks so, if only because Opera has a browser, and a very innovative one at that. Opera launched AI in a browser back in 2023 in a project called ARIA. ARIA enabled contextual interactions within web pages in a GPT-based chat interface. Over time, that's evolved to a tripartite strategy under the Opera Neon brand: The reality is that for many of us, most of our work happens in a browser. I'm writing this story in a browser. I recorded the interview in a browser. I've researched Opera and Perplexity in a browser. I made episode art for the podcast in a browser (thanks, Canva). Opera's thesis is that having agents embedded where you work makes them vastly more useful: they have access to your history, to your work, to your sites and apps. Important note: the Neon agentic browser's AI lives locally on your hardware, making it your agent, not Opera's, and not your employer's. This should boost your privacy, which is critical if you're going to give an agent access to very personal information including, likely, your credit card. Of course, this is just one vision of the future. Apple with Siri, as justly maligned as it is, would have another vision. Google, with Gemini and its own vast fleet of Android-enabled phones, would have another. Microsoft's Copilot is another. And OpenAI, which has ChatGPT apps for mobile devices as well as full computers, might have yet another vision of how we'll integrate AI into our lives and work. So whether the browser will be the locus of our agentic AI future or not is yet to be determined. Remember the old proverb: every problem looks like a nail to the person who only has a hammer. But it seems like a fairly good bet to me.
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Yahoo
Here's why Google might have to sell Chrome, and which companies want to buy it
A federal judge ruled that Google illegally maintains a monopoly in online search and ad markets. A court will this month decide on a remedy, which could force Google to sell Chrome. Several competitors have expressed interest in buying the web browser, including Perplexity. Chrome is the world's most popular web browser. But how much longer it belongs to Google is an open question. A court last year ruled that Google had violated antitrust laws by maintaining a monopoly on internet search. A second ruling in April found Google also monopolized open-web digital ad markets. The Justice Department asked a judge to force Google to divest its premier web browser to remedy the case. A court is expected to rule on that by the end of this month. Chrome, a free web browser developed by Google, is an important distribution tool for Google Search and its other services. It also provides insights into users' search habits and is the most popular web browser on the market. Being forced to sell Chrome would be an undeniable blow to Google and its parent company, Alphabet Inc. Analysts at Barclays said such an action could be a black swan scenario for Google stock, sparking an estimated 15% to 25% decline. Google denies it's a monopoly. It said in a blog post in May that offloading the web browser to another party could render it "obsolete" and "expose billions of people to cyber-attacks." Although the judge has not yet decided Chrome's ultimate fate, competitors are already lining up to gladly take it off Google's hands. an AI search chat platform, confirmed to Business Insider that it made a $35 billion bid for Chrome this week. JP Morgan and several private equity firms backed the bid. is a division of the digital marketing company Public Good, which acquired in July. Public Good President Melissa Anderson and CEO Danny Bibi told Business Insider they reached out to Google on Wednesday. "Given the number of worldwide users Chrome has, it's a really just phenomenal way to scale user adoption," Anderson said. The pair said they're committed to using AI ethically, which means offering its search for free in an effort to make knowledge accessible for all. They also said founded in 1998, already has a network of clients, so finding potential advertisers wouldn't be a heavy lift. Perplexity Perplexity, an AI search startup, made a $34.5 billion bid for the web browser this week. The company launched an AI-native browser, Comet, in July. Although the bid is higher than Perplexity's entire valuation, The Wall Street Journal reported that several investors have agreed to back the potential deal. Perplexity said it would continue supporting Chromium, Google's open-source web browser project that's the foundation of Chrome, as part of the deal, according to the outlet. The outlet reported that Perplexity would continue to keep Google as the default search engine, but users could change that through settings. OpenAI Although OpenAI's ChatGPT turned it into the leading AI startup in Silicon Valley, the company is a tiny fraction of the size of a Big Tech mammoth like Google. Purchasing Chrome, however, would help even the playing field. During Google's antitrust hearing in April, OpenAI's head of ChatGPT testified that the company would be interested in acquiring Chrome if Google were forced to divest. "Yes, we would, as would many other parties," Nick Turley told the court, according to Bloomberg. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also recently said he'd be interested in snapping up Chrome. "If Chrome is really going to sell, we should take a look at it," Altman told a group of journalists on Thursday, according to The Verge. Yahoo Yahoo, a direct competitor of Google, would also be interested in bidding on Chrome, Bloomberg reported. Brian Provost, the general manager for Yahoo Search, said Chrome is "arguably the most important strategic player on the web" during a hearing for Google's antitrust case in April. "We would be able to pursue it with Apollo," Provost said, referring to Yahoo's owner, Apollo Global Management Inc. Read the original article on Business Insider Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Jim Cramer Says Don't Quit Market When It's Frothy: 'Is Widespread Irrationality a Reason To Sell Down in Perfectly Rational Stocks? Absolutely Not'
In the face of a frothy market, financial expert Jim Cramer encourages investors to stay the course, highlighting numerous positive stock narratives that counterbalance the market's irrationality. What Happened: Cramer made a case last week, asserting that the current market conditions are far removed from the dotcom bubble burst of the late 90s. He emphasized that despite the froth, today's market is more rational. Cramer drew attention to the irrationality in recent IPOs like Circle, Figma, and Bullish, which have witnessed significant gains since their launch. On CNBC, he also noted Oklo Inc., a firm with ambitions to construct a compact nuclear reactor powered by nuclear waste, whose stock has surged 247% year-to-date. 'Flying cars, supercharged crypto ETFs, secretive companies that consult in magical ways, all irrational. I could go on and on,' Cramer said. 'Is the widespread irrationality a reason to sell down your positions in perfectly rational stocks? Absolutely not.' Also Read: Jim Cramer Has Blunt Message for Fed Chair Powell After July Job Numbers Tanked On the other hand, Cramer pointed to Amazon Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) as instances of rationality. Amazon's stock climbed by 3% after the introduction of same-day fresh food delivery in over 1,000 U.S. cities and towns. Eli Lilly's stock also experienced a boost when a team from the pharmaceutical company's management and board of directors purchased stock on the open market. 'Sure, there's froth, but there are also perfectly legitimate moves in the stocks of great companies. I am calling this the year of magical thinking, but the truth is you can't get the runs in the good ones without the runs in the bad ones,' Cramer added. Read Next Short Seller Slams Jim Cramer Over Palantir, Accuses Him Of Hyping 'High-Multiple, Hype-Driven Narrative' Image: Shutterstock/katz Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? (AMZN): Free Stock Analysis Report ELI LILLY (LLY): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Jim Cramer Says Don't Quit Market When It's Frothy: 'Is Widespread Irrationality a Reason To Sell Down in Perfectly Rational Stocks? Absolutely Not' originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Sign in to access your portfolio
