Last week, the popular browser Opera announced it’s deploying an AI cluster this month in Keflavik, Iceland. The facility will reportedly feature NVIDIA DGX SuperPOD, which is powered by the expensive and highly sought-after Nvidia H100 GPU-esque processor.
Different meanings can be read from this move by Opera. However, the highlight of it all is that the “internet experience” is changing, and Opera recognises this emerging trend and is probably repositioning itself to adapt.
Evolve or Fall Off
In today’s rapidly changing world, the ability to adapt and evolve is paramount. Whether in tech or elsewhere, companies have always needed to adopt new technologies and business models to innovate and retain growth or risk falling behind.
Now, artificial intelligence is the new force driving this quest for change or innovation across diverse sectors. Over the past months, we have had articles about several companies experimenting and adopting different AI solutions to better serve and improve services. The “browsing space” is no exception.
In May 2023, Google Search launched a so-called Search Generative Experience (SGE), an experimental project for exploring generative AI applications in search. SGE provides a summary of certain search results and linked videos and images relevant to your query.
Recently, Google expanded SGE with the capability of highlighting the main takeaways and providing links to specific sections of the article relevant to users’ searches.
Not everyone is a fan of Google’s AI search feature, especially bloggers and news publishers who claim SGE would result in a lower clickthrough rate. However, SGE is efficient, helpful, and can save users time surfing webpages.
Web browsers have also begun exploring AI features, including Microsoft’s Edge and Opera.
Microsoft introduced a Bing AI-powered chatbot in a sidebar inside its Edge browser in March 2023. The chatbot called “Edge Copilot” is reportedly powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4, and quoting Microsoft, Edge Copilot can provide users with “intelligent suggestions and insights based on the context of the web page and the user’s goals.”
Opera’s Bold Bet on AI
Opera has had its own in-built AI feature since May 2023, when it launched a generative AI assistant, Aria. Per the announcement, Aria functions more like a browser, plus everything else the AI chatbot can do, ranging from generating texts and codes to getting product queries answered.
By launching its AI data cluster, Opera is seemingly preparing, or better said, committing to exploring more AI features to capture the new wave of opportunities and growth AI brings to the browsing landscape. It said the new facility will support the growth of Opera’s browsers and form the base of its future AI services.
Opera believes that “AI will soon take on a role beyond that of a chatbot and help users perform more elaborate browser tasks, requiring more AI computing power.”
In the near future, we could see improved AI features come out from Opera and potentially new AI solutions. The company precisely said “the data cluster in Iceland will allow Opera to deliver new custom capabilities for its browser users, in addition to those built on top of solutions provided by Opera’s AI partners.”
