Google's secret tool that browses the web for you is not so secret anymore

Late last month, it was reported that Google was working on an autonomous AI assistant codenamed Jarvis. A recent mishap on Google’s part has now confirmed the existence of this new AI.

According to The Information, Google accidentally publicized an internal preview of Jarvis on the Chrome web browser extension store. For a short time, users were able to download the internal preview. However, the prototype would not work if you tried to use it, as it requires access permissions. The firm reportedly took the listing for the internal preview down by mid-afternoon that day.

On the extension store, Jarvis was described as “a helpful companion that surfs the web with you.” In the report mentioned earlier, Jarvis is said to be designed to “take over your web browser” and complete tasks that range from helping book hotel rooms to assisting with research. Jarvis is said to work by “capturing frequent screenshots of what’s on their computer screen, and interpreting the shots before taking actions like clicking on a button or typing into a text field.”

It’s reported that Google was planning to unveil Jarvis next month, along with the next iteration of its flagship large language model. But it looks like the cat is out of the bag now. Once Jarvis is rolled out, it sounds like it will be going head-to-head with OpenAI’s recently launched ChatGPT search feature.