Opera is getting its own AI side panel to match Edge
Opera is testing an AI sidebar in its browser. The feature, called Aria, is powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT and can generate text, write code, answer questions, and more, according to a blog post on Opera’s website.
Aria lives within Opera’s sidebar on the left side of the screen, and clicking its icon reveals a panel where you can interact with it. Unlike the standard version of the ChatGPT chatbot, Opera’s browser AI can surface up-to-date information from across the web. It’s also capable of answering questions about Opera itself, as the company says it’s knowledgeable about the browser’s “whole database of support documentation.”
The introduction of Aria builds upon some of the AI features that Opera already has. In February, Opera added ChatGPT into its sidebar, allowing you to generate summaries of the webpage or article you’re visiting. The browser also rolled out AI prompts, a feature that offers a shortcut to various AI tools that change depending on the page you’re on or the text you highlight. This lets you do things like summarize text, create a tweet based on what you’re reading, or get an explanation about a specific concept.
Opera’s new sidebar mirrors some of the AI upgrades that Microsoft has brought to Edge. In addition to building a Bing AI chatbot sidebar into the browser, Microsoft has integrated OpenAI’s DALL-E image generator as well, letting you easily access either tool while you’re browsing the web. The company has also announced that it’s bringing its AI-powered Microsoft 365 Copilot to the browser, too.
For now, you can only access Opera’s AI sidebar by downloading the latest developer version of Opera One on desktop or by downloading the latest Opera beta on Android. Once you sign up for an account, the company will notify you when you have access to the tool.