OpenAI launches web browser 'Atlas' to compete with Google Chrome

Category: Tech News

Tags: AIbrowserbusinessOpenAItechnology

Entities: Chat GPT AtlasCometCopilot AIGemini AIGoogle ChromeJoanna SternMicrosoft EdgeOpenAIPerplexitySam Alton

Transcript

00:00

Hey, welcome back. In tonight's future of everything, if you thought Open AI was already, I don't know, trying to eat Google's lunch, well, now they are officially in the standalone web browser game unveiling today.

Chat GPT Atlas, which is only available to Mac OS users

00:16

so far. And if you want to, you've got to download it and of course use a chat GPT login.

to basically start your search engines because we've got this new chat GPT Atlas in one lane verse Google Chrome which uses Gemini AI verse

00:33

Microsoft's Edge which uses Copilot AI. So which should you use to search out your world?

And yes, full disclosure I did use AI to make this image. Um but I used Grock in the effort of objectivity

00:48

because of the whole search engine thing. Uh anyways, let's get straight over to NBC News tech contributor Joanna Stern.

So Joanna, uh what can Atlas do here that separates it from uh Google Chrome or Edge?

01:04

>> I'm very impressed with what you just did there. So impressed.

Well, look, you're totally you're you're you're totally right about starting your engines, your search engines. Um I'm just recovering from that pun.

So I'm I'm I'm now able to focus on on the

01:20

question you asked me. But so so this is the new frontier.

We had chat bots. We then have seen it move into search and now we are seeing it move into the web browser.

And that is a natural fit because so much of what people have

01:36

started to do in chat bots is search the web, is get information. So, why not combine that chatbot and that more advanced AI right into the web browser?

You asked which is the best and which one you should use? I mean, frankly, it's whatever chatbot that you've started to use and that's what you're

01:51

seeing from these companies, right? If you've started to use Microsoft Copilot and you happen to use Edge, well then you're going to go there.

If you are a huge user of Chat GPT, well, now you've got an answer. You've got Atlas, which they released today, though just to Mac users, they'll be coming to more platforms.

If you're a Plexity user, you

02:08

might use Comet and so on and so on. >> It's so funny because, you know, so many people I've talked to are like, "No, I don't I don't use AI." But they Google stuff, which uses Gemini.

And it's interesting because OpenAI like has already been such a huge threat uh to

02:24

search and then when we do when we Google something on Google, uh Gemini has given us those summaries. Like I imagine all of that is cutting so deeply into ad sales and into that entire revenue model.

So I wonder for like OpenAI besides the subscription model

02:41

like what's on the business end like money making part of all of this is this right now just a like let's just throw as much compute and throw as much value for the user into this as possible and like worry about profitability later or like are they making money from this?

03:01

Well, look, they're not making money yet, and Sam Alton, the CEO, has been pretty clear on that. But this is all building towards what they hope is going to be a business model.

And consumer obviously is a small fraction or a fraction of what they want to do, right? These are consumer browsers, but you can

03:16

see that they are absolutely building an ad product here. I mean, the the the number of things they've announced over the last couple of months are starting to act up or add up.

And what you see here is going for the browser. I mean that is where you are going to be getting the most information for people.

03:32

That's a big sell to advertisers to say, "Hey, we have now a captive audience. They're shopping here.

I mean, we even saw a shopping announcement from them a couple of weeks ago." They've had so many announcements. It's hard to hard to remember.

And all of that is building up to a bigger business model that I

03:47

believe will lean on subscriptions, which they currently have, but also advertising. >> And I'm I'm kind of jealous because I have don't have a MacBook with me.

So, I tried to download it on my iPad. Uh, couldn't get it to to work.

But, have you taken this thing out for a quick spin? Like, what does it feel like?

04:07

>> Look, I'm actually a big user of Perplexity's Comet browser. I've been using that all summer and I've done some crazy things in that.

I mean, this is where you really start to unlock a lot of what AI where they talk about this agentic AI where it can go out and do things for you. I've been just kind of kicking the tires right now on on u the

04:25

the new Atlas browser. So, I can't say I fully tested them and compared, but it can do a lot of the same things.

I have it running up here and I've just asked it to go find me where I could buy walnuts near Certino. I happen to be in Certino tonight and I need some walnuts for a shoot tomorrow.

Don't ask. You

04:40

know what? It will make sense I think next week actually.

Hopefully, I'll be I can show you what what I'm up to. But it's just out there.

It's going and doing for me right now, right? I'm not searching and in a window on the left of my screen.

I've got Gotti and I've got the browser on the left and right now it's just searching all over the place

04:56

where I can buy walnuts with the shell. I should be clear.

I need it with the shell on >> multitasking. And I mean like that is the deepest tease I've ever heard in my entire life.

I can't wait uh for season two of whatever you're up to. Uh we'll

05:11

be checking back with you next week for sure. Uh keep some of those walnuts for us.

We love those. Joanna Stern, you're the best.

Thank you so very much for joining us tonight. >> Good luck on the walnut search.

>> We thank you for watching and remember, stay updated on breaking news and top stories on the NBC News app or watch

05:29

live on our YouTube channel.