OpenAI has turned its ChatGPT Chrome extension into something close to a browser agent. Announced October 15 and reported the next day, the update lets users tag Chrome in ChatGPT's web or desktop app so the assistant can use the tabs they already have open — no separate browser window required.

The feature splits neatly between two modes. In Chat, the assistant reads across multiple open tabs to gather information and answer questions — OpenAI's launch demo had it comparing three open sofa listings by dimensions, material, delivery time and return policy. In Work mode, it goes further: controlling tabs through computer use to send messages, fill out forms, download files, and organize or group a cluttered row of tabs. The sidebar got an upgrade too, putting full ChatGPT with conversation history next to the page you're viewing, and actions run in the background without taking over your active browsing session.

This is the successor to OpenAI's standalone Atlas browser, which the company shut down — the extension is now the main way ChatGPT reaches your browser, and OpenAI describes the goal as "bringing the power of computer use to anyone who uses Chrome." The Chrome Web Store listing reportedly counts around 7 million users, and the extension also works in other Chromium browsers like Edge, Brave and Opera. OpenAI says it's available across all ChatGPT plans, though exactly which plans get Work-mode tab control is not spelled out.

The privacy angle is worth a pause before installing. Chrome's install prompt lists broad access — data on all websites, browsing history, downloads and tab groups — and OpenAI says it doesn't keep a separate complete record of browsing activity, only storing activity once it becomes part of the ChatGPT context (respecting your Memories setting). An agent that can act inside signed-in sites, reading page content it can't fully trust, is exactly the threat model security researchers keep flagging. Read the permission screen, shut sensitive tabs first, and treat Work mode as the powerful-but-sharp tool it is.

Sources