How AI-Powered Browsers Are Becoming the Future of Search Engines

If the browser is the entry point to the internet, then the search engine results page (SERP) was the internet’s table of contents. Rather than reference titles and page numbers, the SERP encapsulates a laundry list of blue links, allowing people to jump to the information, content, or destinations they’re looking for — without any real guarantees they’d land where they wanted to be.

While that model thrived for decades, it was never fool-proof. And where there’s room for improvement, there’s always going to be innovation. Today, the search box is becoming a relic, being replaced by conversational AI experiences. AI-powered browsers are making the SERP even less relevant by reshaping how consumers discover, engage, and evaluate brands and products.

These aren’t simply cosmetic changes browsers are undergoing, either. It’s a complete refurbishing of the internet’s gateway, with new entrypoints, surfaces, and tools guiding and directing consumers. Instead of typing queries into legacy search engines, consumers are increasingly turning to AI-driven browser environments that integrate tasks, suggestions, and native search features directly into the browsing interface. 

How Consumer Behavior Is Setting the Stage for the Next Browser War

It’s clear the standard browser and SERP experience is past its expiration date. Look no further than the rapid migration of consumers to other channels and the increased adoption of AI tools and technologies. This isn’t just people chasing the shiny, new toy in the chest; it’s a complete upheaval of the consumer journey catalyzed by an increasingly irrelevant SERP and browser experience.

According to our 2025 State of Search report, 48% of consumers now use a browser other than Chrome or Safari (the undisputed market leaders) as their default browser. Another 45% report engaging with AI-powered browser features on a weekly basis. This all comes down to two things: value and utility for the consumer.

Our recent AI Search report found that over half of consumers (52%) find AI-generated search results more helpful than traditional browser-based search results. A majority of consumers (59%) also express positive sentiment for AI, indicating a massive opportunity and market for new AI-powered browsers like ChatGPT’s recently launched Atlas.

What Makes AI Browsers So Disruptive?

AI-powered browsers integrate smart assistance and intent detection directly into the browsing experience, allowing them to see, reason, and act on behalf of the consumer. This creates:

• Zero-query engagement: Ads surface as suggestions before a user enters a keyword.
• Task-oriented search: Users go to get complex actions completed on their behalf, rather than finding links that direct them to perform a task on their own.
• Faster decision loops: Product discovery happens earlier and faster, reducing reliance on legacy search engines and restructuring what we typically view as the linear buyer’s funnel.

These browsers are creating an entirely new top-of-funnel experience for consumers outside of the legacy SERP, meaning ad campaigns primarily focused in this channel are more likely than ever to miss the first wave of consumer intent entirely. And that’s not even taking into account the consolidation of the purchasing journey into a single platform, the harbinger of which can be seen in the infusion of payment and checkout options in AI surfaces. Say hello to 2026’s dynamic duo: PayPal and ChatGPT.

Why This Matters for Advertisers

Legacy search engines are no longer the sole source of intent. The next wave of discovery is happening across AI-powered browsers and chat surfaces that deliver experiences and features like:

• New tab pages with native product suggestions
• AI-driven autocomplete and predictive text
• Contextual recommendation modules in-browser

AI browsers are compressing the traditional funnel and becoming intent generators, creating an environment where advertisers can meet consumers before a single keyword is even typed and definitely before they have to navigate outside of the browser. 

If consumers are clicking through less and less and completing every core element of the shopping journey within AI surfaces, it’s a no-brainer then that advertisers looking to influence purchasing decisions and intent need relevant and engaging touchpoints to remain visible and viable — not to mention surface a product option that correlates to the human-AI conversation taking place once the human is ultimately primed to purchase.

The Next Chapter of Search Is Already Being Written

If your media strategy stops at the SERP, you're missing where the consumer journey actually starts. Whether it’s ChatGPT’s Atlas or Perplexity’s Comet, the desire for conversational AI-embedded browser experiences is only growing.

As AI-powered browsers become the new search engines, advertisers need to rethink how and where they meet consumers and shape their intent. The brands that adapt early will:

• Win more attention across privacy-conscious, AI-first chat and browser surfaces
• Influence decision-making across an increasingly AI-driven consumer journey
• Reduce risk by diversifying media spend beyond legacy search environments
• Increase brand discoverability, grow market share, and outpace competitors

adMarketplace offers a transparent, incremental, and scalable path into this new frontier of AI browser-based discovery. Our newest media solution, AMP Discover, powers contextual ads that deliver consumers relevancy and value in AI environments. This allows brands to show up authentically in these surfaces and reach consumers as they express commercial intent in the channels they’re actively making purchasing decisions in.

Reach out today and let’s talk about how your brand can show up when and where it matters most.