OpenAI just announced ChatGPT Atlas -— a browser that puts ChatGPT at the center of browsing. People immediately pointed out that Perplexity already did this months ago with Comet. They're right.

Atlas adds chat, memory, and agent mode to your browser. You can talk to ChatGPT about any webpage. It remembers what you've browsed and suggests relevant content. Agents can automate tasks like booking or form-filling. Available for macOS now, coming to other platforms later.

Perplexity launched Comet in July 2024—nearly a year earlier. Same feature set: sidecar assistant, task automation, background agents, AI-first architecture. After launching as a $200/month exclusive, they made it free globally in October 2025.

Both products solve the same problem the same way. Both are competent but neither is particularly innovative. It's exactly what you'd expect when combining an LLM with a browser. OpenAI wins on distribution—ChatGPT's 200+ million users and brand loyalty. Perplexity gets credit for building it first and making it free.

So what are these browsers actually for?

I've used Comet. Found coupons, searched things, summarized pages. All fine. But what can I actually do with an AI browser that I can't do by opening ChatGPT in a tab?

Agent mode automating bookings? Technically yes. But do you trust your browser with payment info? Managing Linear projects sounds good until you realize people already have integrations set up. Inline text editing saves a click. That's not transformative.

People don't need an AI browser. They need Gmail with AI writing, Linear with AI summaries, apps that already have AI built in. The browser is just a distribution channel, not the real product.

Both assume the bottleneck is information access or task automation. It's not. It's judgment. I don't need AI to find the cheapest flight—I need to decide if it's worth the layover. I don't need AI to summarize an article—I need to know if it matters. These browsers just automate what was already easy.

OpenAI wins on scale and distribution. Perplexity has the better strategy—they built it first and made it free. Both will find users. Neither will replace Chrome. The real story is simple: when you have a great LLM, integrating it everywhere is the obvious next step. That's not innovation. That's just what the market does.