What useful, non-creepy AI features are there?

I cannot imagine why one would want AI in a browser at all, but I am open to the possibility that there are applications I have not considered.

Summarizing a page (or explaining a phrase on one) for non-native-speakers or fixing up text input boxes are two that immediately come to mind.

Sure, both are possible by copy-pasting to any LLM, but being able to do it without leaving the page is great.

This applies to ebook readers at least as much as it does to browsers, fwiw – I find it mind-boggling that Kindles still doesn't have an "ask $LLM about this highlighted sentence" feature.

Let's say I want a 5000mAh power bank supporting 12v USB PD output and trickle charging. And it's got to be available in my country.

To find such a thing I basically have to open loads of product pages cross-reference retailers' websites with manufacturers' product pages.

If I could automate that process, it'd be pretty neat.

Thanks.

I don't think I understand why that would be implemented in the browser and not as its own service, but it does sound useful.

I just did the same thing with "very famous rock live acts performing within 500 miles of my location within the next 9 months". Whether this kind of functionality needs to be delivered via the browser I'm not sure. The LLM has to be server hosted, so may we well host the rest of it server-side, perhaps?

Chat conversations are definitely not the peak LLM UI. They're universal and don't require app integration, which is why they're what people are currently primarily using, but I strongly suspect that that's temporary.

"Hey AI rewrite this comment to sound smarter" :)

A relatively small variation for a client-side LLM would be something like: "suggest variations on this search that might produce better results"

Had this issue the other day that I wanted to try to find a remembered example of using Ground Penetrating Radar to find hidden roads in Northern Spain and Southern France, yet for everything tried I could not get Google to actually return results that would ever focus on what it was I actually wanted.

There was some GPR results, there was some about hidden structures, yet finding the actual scholarly articles discussing hidden roadways and searching under farm fields for features that reveal or point to their existence simply never returned positive. Rephrasing, changing the sentence, trying to prioritize search terms never really changed much.

Doing stuff too like, "image search, pixel tree, except filter out all the pay for an image stock photo websites." Really difficult to find anything these days cause there's so much chaff of stock image websites.

What features? Voice control?

If it is about chat, do we actually need Firefox adapted when you can go to gemini.google.com or some other one and write what you want there? Optionality is ensured since you actively have to go there.

Yeah I think although he acknowledges how biased the Firefox forum poster sample is, I think he is vastly underestimating just how biased.

If Firefox is reduced to just nerds who post in forums it's totally dead. Maybe it's at that point already.

Tbh I still use Chrome because Firefox's performance just isn't as good. I wish it weren't so but there we go.

When have you last tried it, and what types of sites are you struggling with? Curious since I had the same concern in the past, but it's been a long time since it's been an issue.

Safari still seems better on battery life on macOS, but I can't really tell a difference between Chrome and Firefox anymore.

No sites in particular; it's just noticeably less snappy than Chrome (on Android anyway - the difference on desktop isn't really noticeable).

Ah, I can definitely see mobile being a different story. Google is probably pouring immense resources into performance there as it directly affects battery life, just like Apple does into Safari.

I'm unfortunately on the latter platform, so I'm limited to WebKit chrome wrappers for the time being.