The Arc browser is “finally” launching its AI-powered features under the “Arc Max” moniker. The Browser Company is using a combination of OpenAI’s GPT-3.5 and Anthropic’s models to build lightweight but useful features.
Just like other AI-powered assistants present in rival browsers, you can converse with ChatGPT or ask questions in the context of the current page.
However, Arc has added some nifty features with its implementation. Arc Max can rename pinned tabs based on the page title and make them short and easy to read. Plus, it can also rename downloaded files based on the content in them. The new AI-powered feature also can fetch a summary preview of a link when you hover over it and press shift.
Users can access these features by going to the command bar (Cmd + T) and typing “Arc Max.” They can choose which features to enable. They can converse with ChatGPT by typing “ChatGPT” in the command bar and asking the query.
There are tons of AI-powered tools on the web ranging from web apps to extensions. The trick is to make them useful by integrating them well within your workflow, so you don’t have to go out of the way to use an “AI-powered feature to boost your productivity.”
In an interview with The Verge, The Browser Company said it made various prototypes to make AI features contextual. The team experimented with automatic notetaking by selecting the text and turning the forward button into an exploration page (StumbleUpon anyone?).
Earlier this year, Arc unveiled a feature called Boosts, that lets you remove some elements from a page and customize it. In one of the prototypes, the company experimented with a way for users to create Boosts with prompts. But these features didn’t make the final list as they were not fast enough.
In a livestreamed announcement, the company’s CEO Josh Miller said that these features are not set in stone. He said that the browser is going to keep these five features at least for 90 days and meanwhile gather feedback about them to decide which ones to keep.