Dia Browser is Available in Beta on Mac

[Gandalf_The_Grey]

The Browser Company released the first beta version of its next-generation Dia Browser today, but only on the Mac. Hopefully, Windows users won’t have to wait as long as we did with its previous browser Arc: The first Windows version didn’t arrive until 6 months after the Mac version, and it was never as good. The Mac version of Arc was–and still is–incredible.

The Browser Company hasn’t issued a blog post explaining the new browser. Instead, it has tweeted the details, which amount to anyone being able to download Dia in beta on a Mac and the need to create an account with the company. There’s also a short promotional video that hints at what the company is trying to accomplish with this new product.

For now, Dia is a minimalist looking app from a user experience perspective and it lacks of Arc’s best features, like the sidebar. It’s based on Chromium, so it should perform well, and it’s compatible with all the extensions everyone wants. But where Arc used a command bar that worked as a replacement for the familiar New tab (Ctrl/Cmd + T) experience in other browsers, Dia works more normally in that regard. It instead uses the address bar as an interface for its built-in AI chatbot in addition to its normal duties.

Address bar-based search works with Google normally or you can use the Dia AI instead. There is also a Dia chatbot sidebar on the right, similar to the Copilot sidebar in Edge, that helps you interact with webpages you view.

Dia Browser is Available in Beta on Mac

The Browser Company released the first beta version of its next-generation Dia Browser today, but only on the Mac.

www.thurrott.com

 

[Gandalf_The_Grey]

Miller said and I quote, "People aren't interfacing with the internet through web pages anymore. They're interfacing with AI models." He also pointed out that the interface to the internet should be able to handle web pages and chat.

I respectfully disagree with the idea that having a chat interface is central to a browser. Every web browser works with AI services, because they are web pages too, and that is how most people use them. Other browsers have integrated chat in their browser too, Brave has Leo AI, Opera has Aria, Edge has Copilot, Chrome integrated Gemini. The difference is, these AI features are optional, a user who wants to use them will use them. And those who don't will simply disable the feature and use the browser. With Dia, the AI is everywhere, even in the address bar, it's not optional.

This is the same mistake they did with Arc, users will not re-learn how to browse, because they don't have to, they already have a browser that does things the way they want. It's unrealistic to expect users to change their habits.

Dia browser beta launched with AI features - gHacks Tech News

The Browser Company, the makers of the now-discontinued Arc Browser, have launched a beta version of their AI-powered Dia browser. It is, unsurprisingly, based on Chromium's engine. ADVERTISEMENT Dia is invite only. […]

www.ghacks.net