Posted by Jake Peterson
https://lifehacker.com/tech/claude-ai-will-control-web-browser?utm_medium=RSS
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Do you ever think to yourself while browsing the internet, "If only an AI bot could do this for me?" I don't, but I imagine some people must, as Anthropic is now rolling out an experiment to allow just that for certain Chrome users.
The company announced the new integration on Tuesday. Eligible users will now have access to a Chrome extension that, when enabled, allows Claude AI to see everything you're doing in your browser. Claude can use this context to better respond to questions and queries, which you can access from the extension's built-in chatbot window.
But while this is one component of the feature, Anthropic's vision goes well beyond a more useful chatbot experience. In addition to more contextual interactions, Claude for Chrome can also take over your browser, and run actions for you. It's really the stuff of the future, though I'm not sure it's a future I really want.
Here's an example: Let's say you're looking for an apartment. Instead of opening Zillow yourself, you can click the Claude button in Chrome to launch the chatbot, and tell it exactly what you're looking for in a new home. As part of that request, you can ask Claude to look up the listings on Zillow for you, and share the best listings. According to Anthropic, Claude will do this for you, and will even tell you which permissions it needs you to enable within the chatbot window to complete the task, such as reading page content on Zillow.com.
In another example, Anthropic shows the user asking Claude to find a well-reviewed restaurant on DoorDash that serves garlic noodles, and add the dish to their cart. Claude walks through its steps, including what it sees on the DoorDash home page, how it needs to search for "garlic noodles," and even that it needs to press "Enter" to perform the search.
If it works as advertised, it's kind of wild that you can ask a chatbot like Claude to do things on a web browser like Chrome, and it just will. But for most tasks, I don't necessarily see the point. I suppose if you're too busy to look up apartment listings yourself, or to find noodles to order for dinner, Claude for Chrome offers a multitasking opportunity. But I don't usually have a problem with these types of tasks. In fact, when I've had to find a new apartment or home, I've enjoyed looking for myself; I also like picking out a good restaurant for dinner. These aren't things I necessarily need or want a bot for, especially for results that are quite subjective: Why would Claude know what apartments look right for me, or whether I'd prefer noodles from one restaurant over another? I'd prefer to choose those things for myself.
Claude for Chrome and your security
Then there are the security concerns, which Anthropic is transparent about. The company acknowledges that AI browsers are susceptible to prompt injection attacks, a type of cyberattack in which bad actors add malicious instructions to AI models. In its testing, the company found that before implementing any of its safety measures, prompt injection attacks had a 23.6% success rate. In one of these successful tests, Anthropic sent a malicious email with instructions to delete all emails in an inbox. Claude for Chrome read the email and followed the instructions. Not ideal.
But this is without the security measures in place, which Anthropic says it has been working on. That includes giving users control over all site-level permissions, as well as checking with the user before taking "high-risk" action like publishing content, making purchases, or sharing personal details. The company has also improved Claude's instructions on how to handle personal data, and blocked the bot from "high-risk" sites, like those dealing with finances, or adult or pirated content. Anthropic is working on more guardrails too, which is why this feature is currently quite limited.
How to sign up for Claude for Chrome
Right now, Anthropic is only offering the initial test to 1,000 Claude Max subscribers, which costs either $100 or $200 per month. The company will continue rolling out the early access to more Max subscribers over the coming weeks, though I wouldn't be surprised to see them eventually open testing to Pro subscribers ($20/month) down the line.
If you're eligible, you can sign up for the waitlist right now. While there are the aforementioned safety guardrails in place, the company does warn that testers will be taking on the following risks from malicious users:
Accessing your accounts or files
Sharing your private information
Making purchases on your behalf
Taking actions you never intended
https://lifehacker.com/tech/claude-ai-will-control-web-browser?utm_medium=RSS
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