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We're now starting to see some rudimentary AI agents appear: tools that can not only write code and solve math problems, but also perform actions on your behalf. And Opera has announced the first AI agent for its browser, the aptly named Browser Operator.
The idea is that Browser Operator can take care of some tedious online tasks for you, saving you time and clicks. It could arrange your next grocery order, for example, or check out hotel prices in a place you're thinking of visiting.
"For more than 30 years, the browser gave you access to the web, but it has never been able to get stuff done for you," says Opera's Krystian Kolondra. "Now it can."
Right now the feature is in what's being labeled as a "preview" release. Opera states that none of your personal or sensitive data is sent back to the web while the AI agent is working, and says users remain in full control of the process while it's happening—you wouldn't want an order full of the wrong groceries, after all.
As is the norm with the latest wave of modern AI tools, you talk to Browser Operator using natural language: "I want to get plane tickets from New York to San Francisco at the cheapest time in August," for example. The bot then figures out what the necessary online actions are, and carries them out.
If any kind of user action is required, like entering payment information or login details, Browser Operator pauses so you can take over. You can also pause the tool manually whenever you like, just in case it's booking you a hotel in the wrong city or ordering clothes that aren't your style.
The Browser Operator feature doesn't seem to be live at the time of writing, but when it's available, you'll be able to launch it from the browser's Command Line interface or via the sidebar (where Aria, Opera's integrated AI, can also be found). Opera says the feature will roll out "in the near future" as part of an AI-related feature drop.
The idea seems like an appealing one, in principle: Online tasks like shopping around for the best prices on gadgets or booking hotel rooms for a vacation can be tedious and take up a lot of time. If an AI bot was able to do all of the grunt work with human supervision, that would be genuinely useful.
That said, it all has to work. These tasks might be time-consuming and dull, but they're jobs that also need to be done right. If Browser Operator can't follow instructions properly or keeps on making mistakes, then Opera users are going to go back to relying on their own clicking and scrolling.
As I'm not able to access the feature yet, I'm relying on Opera's demo video for ideas about what it can do. The interface looks to be straightforward and intuitive, sitting to the side of the browser or just above the webpages the AI agent is working on.
The example of booking tickets for a soccer match seems the most useful: You can tell the AI when you want to go, where you want to sit, how much you want to pay, and which ticket types to look for. Assuming Browser Operator understands what you mean and can navigate the necessary websites well enough, that's a lot of time saved.
This new AI agent inside Opera also explains what it's doing as it goes, so you can see what it's trying to do and how successfully it's managing to carry out your instructions. It looks as though you're going to be able to jump in and interfere if Browser Operator is about to do something it shouldn't.
Opera isn't the only company working on agentic AI. Last month ChatGPT introduced its own Operator tool, which can carry out tasks on the web: Like Opera Browser Operator, it's in preview' at the moment, and it's also only available to users paying for the $200-a-month Pro plan.
Full story here:
The idea is that Browser Operator can take care of some tedious online tasks for you, saving you time and clicks. It could arrange your next grocery order, for example, or check out hotel prices in a place you're thinking of visiting.
"For more than 30 years, the browser gave you access to the web, but it has never been able to get stuff done for you," says Opera's Krystian Kolondra. "Now it can."
Right now the feature is in what's being labeled as a "preview" release. Opera states that none of your personal or sensitive data is sent back to the web while the AI agent is working, and says users remain in full control of the process while it's happening—you wouldn't want an order full of the wrong groceries, after all.
As is the norm with the latest wave of modern AI tools, you talk to Browser Operator using natural language: "I want to get plane tickets from New York to San Francisco at the cheapest time in August," for example. The bot then figures out what the necessary online actions are, and carries them out.
If any kind of user action is required, like entering payment information or login details, Browser Operator pauses so you can take over. You can also pause the tool manually whenever you like, just in case it's booking you a hotel in the wrong city or ordering clothes that aren't your style.
The feature is coming soon
The Browser Operator feature doesn't seem to be live at the time of writing, but when it's available, you'll be able to launch it from the browser's Command Line interface or via the sidebar (where Aria, Opera's integrated AI, can also be found). Opera says the feature will roll out "in the near future" as part of an AI-related feature drop.
The idea seems like an appealing one, in principle: Online tasks like shopping around for the best prices on gadgets or booking hotel rooms for a vacation can be tedious and take up a lot of time. If an AI bot was able to do all of the grunt work with human supervision, that would be genuinely useful.
That said, it all has to work. These tasks might be time-consuming and dull, but they're jobs that also need to be done right. If Browser Operator can't follow instructions properly or keeps on making mistakes, then Opera users are going to go back to relying on their own clicking and scrolling.
As I'm not able to access the feature yet, I'm relying on Opera's demo video for ideas about what it can do. The interface looks to be straightforward and intuitive, sitting to the side of the browser or just above the webpages the AI agent is working on.
The example of booking tickets for a soccer match seems the most useful: You can tell the AI when you want to go, where you want to sit, how much you want to pay, and which ticket types to look for. Assuming Browser Operator understands what you mean and can navigate the necessary websites well enough, that's a lot of time saved.
This new AI agent inside Opera also explains what it's doing as it goes, so you can see what it's trying to do and how successfully it's managing to carry out your instructions. It looks as though you're going to be able to jump in and interfere if Browser Operator is about to do something it shouldn't.
Opera isn't the only company working on agentic AI. Last month ChatGPT introduced its own Operator tool, which can carry out tasks on the web: Like Opera Browser Operator, it's in preview' at the moment, and it's also only available to users paying for the $200-a-month Pro plan.
Full story here:
![[DK]](/data/avatars/s/57/57999.jpg?1720990206){kind=avatar}
