Tech
The creators of the Arc browser are reimagining web browsers yet again
The people behind the Arc browser are recruiting for a new big project — a second browser product powered by AI. It was hinted at recently, but now it’s official. It’s called Dia, and it’s built around The Browser Company’s belief that AI features can’t be contained in a single app or behind a single button — instead, software needs to built from the ground up with AI in mind.
The video the company posted is part product announcement and part recruitment video, and it teases a few features the new browser will have. It seems it will get all the now-usual AI features like an autocomplete-type feature that fetches facts from the web, as well as summary generation and idea generation.
It also “understands” everything in the browser window so it can act on any information you can see. The example shown in the video was copying a list of Amazon links from open tabs and putting them into an email. Understanding everything on the screen, however, means the AI model is watching everything on the screen — so The Browser Company will need to be transparent about its data and privacy policies if it wants to avoid a Microsoft Recall-style situation.
You’ll also be able to complete actions like searching for files and creating emails by typing natural language instructions into the address bar. According to the video, the company is even hoping the browser will be able to do things like add items to a shopping cart and email different information to a list of recipients.
According to CEO Josh Miller, the company isn’t planning to replace the Arc browser with Dia, but in the video, he says he believes AI is where the world is going. For anyone who doesn’t agree, we can only hope that The Browser Company and other companies decide to continue offering non-AI options and easily disabled AI features. Then again, there’s a growing numbrt of options to choose from as the competition to be the best web browser heats up.