ChatGPT Atlas

ChatGPT Atlas no longer exists: OpenAI's AI browser, launched for macOS on Oct 21, 2025, was announced for retirement on Jul 9, 2026 and stopped working on Aug 9, 2026. Its ideas live on in the new ChatGPT desktop app for Mac and Windows, which has a built-in browser that can browse, sign in to accounts and act on pages, and in a ChatGPT extension for Chrome (TechCrunch, Jul 9, 2026). The Windows version of Atlas was never released.

If you came looking for an AI browser today, the choices are Comet from Perplexity (free on Mac, Windows, iOS and Android), Gemini in Chrome, or ChatGPT's own app and extension. The Best AI Browser guide compares them.

Learn more: ChatGPT Atlas on chatgpt.vi.ki

Quick facts

What Atlas was

0:16 Atlas looked like an ordinary browser with ChatGPT at its center. An "Ask ChatGPT" button opened a sidebar that could read the page you were on, so you could ask about it, summarize it or compare it with other tabs. With browser memories, ChatGPT could keep track of the sites you visited and what you did there, and use that to personalize its answers.

1:04 Agent mode let ChatGPT click, type and fill in forms in your tabs to book a table, shop or edit a document; at launch it was limited to Plus, Pro and Business subscribers. Unlike some rivals, Atlas was open to everyone from day one rather than through an invite list.

Why OpenAI shut it down

OpenAI did not keep Atlas as a separate browser. TechCrunch reported on Jul 9, 2026 that the company had been cutting back on "side quests" (the same push that closed the Sora app) and concluded the browser was a feature rather than a destination, putting agentic browsing into tools people already use. The replacement desktop app, launched the same day, combines Chat, Work and Codex and includes a browser plus a cloud browser that agents use on OpenAI's servers.

What happened to your Atlas data

Bookmarks, open tabs and history did not move across automatically: OpenAI asked users to export them before Aug 9, 2026, and saved logins and cookies could not be carried to another browser. Conversations with ChatGPT belong to your ChatGPT account, not the browser, so they were not lost (Notebookcheck, Aug 3, 2026). OpenAI said security updates for Atlas would end, so an installed copy should not be used now.

Prompt injection: the risk Atlas exposed

An AI browser that acts for you can be tricked by instructions hidden in a web page or an email, a "prompt injection." In a Dec 22, 2025 post reported by TechCrunch, OpenAI said Atlas's agent mode "expands the security threat surface" and that prompt injection is unlikely ever to be fully solved. It trained an automated attacker to find such attacks and advised giving the agent narrow instructions, browsing logged out where possible and reading every confirmation it asks for. The same risk applies to Comet, Gemini in Chrome and every agentic browser.

History

• Oct 21, 2025: Atlas launched on macOS worldwide; Windows, iOS and Android were promised later (TechCrunch).
• Dec 22, 2025: OpenAI published its work hardening Atlas against prompt injection.
• Jul 9, 2026: OpenAI announced Atlas's retirement and launched the ChatGPT desktop app with a built-in browser and a Chrome extension; the Windows version was canceled.
• Aug 9, 2026: Atlas stopped working.

Alternatives to ChatGPT Atlas

• The ChatGPT desktop app: OpenAI's own successor, for Mac and Windows, with a built-in browser that can sign in to sites and act on pages.
• Comet: Perplexity's free AI browser for Mac, Windows, iOS and Android, the nearest like-for-like replacement.
• Gemini in Chrome: Gemini built into Chrome, with an auto browse agent for Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers.
• Manus: a general-purpose agent that browses in the cloud rather than in your own browser.

Frequently asked questions

Is ChatGPT Atlas still available? No. OpenAI shut ChatGPT Atlas down on Aug 9, 2026, after announcing it on Jul 9, 2026; its browsing features moved to the ChatGPT desktop app and a Chrome extension.

Was there a ChatGPT Atlas for Windows? No. Atlas only ever shipped for macOS, and OpenAI canceled the planned Windows version when it retired Atlas; Windows users get the ChatGPT desktop app's built-in browser instead.

What replaced ChatGPT Atlas? The ChatGPT desktop app for Mac and Windows, which combines Chat, Work and Codex with a built-in browser, and the ChatGPT extension for Chrome.

Was ChatGPT Atlas free? Yes, Atlas was free to download and use with any ChatGPT account, but its agent mode needed a paid Plus, Pro or Business plan.

Did ChatGPT Atlas lose my chats? No. Chats with ChatGPT are kept in your ChatGPT account. Atlas bookmarks, tabs and history had to be exported by hand before Aug 9, 2026.

Sources

• OpenAI launches an AI-powered browser: ChatGPT Atlas, TechCrunch, Oct 21, 2025
• OpenAI says AI browsers may always be vulnerable to prompt injection attacks, TechCrunch, Dec 22, 2025
• OpenAI is shutting down Atlas, but its AI browser ambitions are still growing, TechCrunch, Jul 9, 2026
• ChatGPT Atlas ends on August 9: Here's how to save your data, Notebookcheck, Aug 3, 2026
• Introducing ChatGPT Atlas, OpenAI, Oct 21, 2025 (video)