The news: Opera is launching an AI browser with agentic abilities to rival Google’s AI Mode and Perplexity’s upcoming Comet.

The Opera Neon browser has three main functions:

• Chat. The chatbot interface allows users to search the web, ask questions, and get contextual information about websites.
• Make. It can analyze data, generate code, and develop games, apps, or websites.
• Do. A “digital operator” can autonomously manage routine web tasks like filling out forms, booking trips, navigating websites, or online shopping.

Opera stated that its AI agents can run multiple tasks at once and keep working on projects even when users go offline. It’s available by subscription, though no price has been announced yet, and a wait list is open.

Working solo: Many of Opera’s AI abilities are also offered by tools like OpenAI’s Operator and Microsoft’s Copilot. However, embedding agentic functions directly into a browser could help the AI work better on websites and quickly scale the agents’ intelligence.

• Owning the browser that the AI operates on could let it more easily take action on websites and apps by being a built-in feature, rather than an extension.
• Opera can also train its AI on user behavior within the browser, offering deeper insight into how people search and interact online.

What’s the niche? Google dominates the browser market, leaving little room for challengers. However, Opera Neon could compete with alternatives like Firefox, Arc Browser, and DuckDuckGo. Opera owns 2.1% of the global browser market, per StatCounter, compared with Firefox at 2.6% and Chrome at 66.2%.

Opera Neon could be an especially appealing product for consumers who want independence from Google, whether for privacy concerns or dissatisfaction with its tools.

Our take: Opera could position Neon as a go-to option for creators and productivity-minded users who want to launch tasks and make progress on projects around the clock.

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