VebAtlas vs Arc
Reference archive: this page documents the original Yab browser. Features, platforms and release dates here do not describe the current Veb prototype. Veb release plans →
ChatGPT Atlas was OpenAI’s Chromium browser for the Mac, with ChatGPT beside every page and an agent mode. OpenAI shut it down on August 9, 2026, and points people to the ChatGPT desktop app and its Chrome extension.
Arc is The Browser Company’s Chromium browser for Mac and Windows, with tabs down the side, spaces, folders and Split View. Its shutdown was announced October 22, 2026: new accounts are closed, and the desktop app will stop working December 22, 2026.
Arc shutdown update: October 22, 2026. Official dates, export instructions and what to do next. Other feature facts were checked October 9, 2026.
The short answer
- OpenAI shut Atlas down on August 9, 2026: it may not open, runs no agent tasks and gets no security updates
- if you already use Arc and are preparing to move before December 22, 2026
- if you need to export your Arc spaces and tabs before the desktop app stops working
- if you miss Arc and want spaces, pins and folders kept, on a Mac
- if you already pay for Claude or ChatGPT and want it to work in your signed-in tabs
At a glance
Atlas and Arc, with Veb beside them for a Mac.
| What | ChatGPT Atlas | Arc | Veb |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made by | OpenAI | The Browser Company (Atlassian) | Serafim Korablev |
| Status | Shut down August 9, 2026 | Closing December 22, 2026 | Updated |
| Runs on | Mac | Mac and Windows | Mac |
| Phone app | None; Atlas was Mac only and shut down on Aug 9, 2026 | Arc Search on iOS and Android; AI, sign-in and sync end November 23, 2026 | Veb for iPhone, in beta on TestFlight; syncs spaces, tabs, bookmarks, history and chats |
| Price | Shut down; it was free, with agent mode on paid ChatGPT plans | Free for existing members until the desktop app stops working December 22, 2026 | Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| AI | An agent that works in pages, on its own AI service | Chat about pages, on its own AI service | An agent that works in pages, on your Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| Driven by outside agents | No | No | MCP and a command line |
| Engine | Chromium | Chromium | WebKit |
| Tabs down the side | A setting | Yes | Yes |
| Spaces | Not stated | Yes | Yes |
| Split View | Not stated | Yes | Yes |
| Extensions | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store |
| Ad blocker | Not stated | No | Built in |
| Open source | No | No | No |
Arc’s shutdown announcement checked October 22, 2026; other features and prices checked October 9, 2026. Prices are per month, in US dollars.
Where they differ
What separates them, area by area. Where one plainly has more, it says who; where it comes down to taste, it says so.
AIAtlas leads
Only Atlas has an agent that clicks, types and finishes tasks in your pages. Atlas put ChatGPT beside every page, with optional browser memories and, on paid plans, an agent mode; it no longer works. Arc Max helpers tidy tab titles and downloads, preview links and put ChatGPT in the command bar; Ask on Page was removed in August 2025, and there is no agent.
Tabs and windowsArc leads
Atlas has tabs down the side as a setting and folders in the sidebar. Arc has tabs down the side, spaces, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep.
PriceArc leads
Atlas: Shut down; it was free, with agent mode on paid ChatGPT plans. Arc: Free for existing members until the desktop app stops working December 22, 2026.
Where it runsArc leads
Atlas runs on Mac. Arc runs on Mac and Windows. On a Mac, Atlas needs macOS 14.2 or later and Arc needs macOS 13 or later. Atlas has no phone app: Atlas was Mac only and shut down on Aug 9, 2026. On the phone, Arc: Arc Search on iOS and Android; AI, sign-in and sync end November 23, 2026.
Engine and extensionsa matter of taste
Both are built on Chromium, as Chrome is, so sites work as they do in Chrome. Both take extensions from the Chrome Web Store.
Privacyeven
Neither has an ad blocker of its own. Atlas summed up pages for browser memories and deleted the originals; training on browsing was off by default. Arc accounts will be deactivated December 22, 2026, and their personal data deleted within 30 days; export what you want to keep before then.
UpdatesArc leads
Atlas: OpenAI shut Atlas down on August 9, 2026: it may not open, runs no agent tasks and gets no security updates. Arc: Shutdown announced October 22, 2026: new accounts are closed, and Arc for macOS and Windows stops working December 22, 2026.
What their pages don’t lead with
Real limits, from the makers’ own words and our own use.
ChatGPT Atlas
- Shut down on August 9, 2026, with no more security updates
- Was Mac only, on Apple silicon
- Bookmarks, tabs and history had to be exported by hand
- Agent mode needed a paid ChatGPT plan
Arc
- New Arc accounts closed October 22, 2026
- Arc for macOS and Windows stops working December 22, 2026
- Arc Search loses AI, sign-in and sync November 23, 2026; iOS keeps basic browsing
- Arc accounts deactivate December 22, 2026; their personal data is deleted within 30 days
- Arc says Arc Search for Android will be fully deprecated and removed from Google Play and installed devices December 22, 2026
- No ad blocker of its own
Veb, honestly
- Mac only for now: macOS 15.4 or later; the iPhone app is in beta, and there is no Windows or Android
- New: first released in September 2026
- Its AI needs a Claude or ChatGPT plan; ChatGPT’s free plan may work with low limits
- WebKit, as in Safari: a site tested only in Chrome can misbehave
- Closed source
What changed lately
- October 22, 2026Arc: Shutdown announced: new accounts closed, mobile AI and sync end November 23, and Arc for macOS and Windows stops working December 22, 2026
- August 9, 2026Atlas: Atlas shut down
- July 9, 2026Atlas: OpenAI said it will sunset Atlas for the new ChatGPT desktop app
- October 21, 2025Atlas: Launched for macOS
- October 21, 2025Arc: Atlassian completed its purchase of The Browser Company
- August 28, 2025Arc: Ask On Page removed from Arc Max
Questions
Is ChatGPT Atlas free?
It no longer works. Shut down; it was free, with agent mode on paid ChatGPT plans.
Is Arc free?
Yes. Free for existing members until the desktop app stops working December 22, 2026.
Which has an AI agent, Atlas or Arc?
Atlas. Atlas put ChatGPT beside every page, with optional browser memories and, on paid plans, an agent mode; it no longer works. Arc Max helpers tidy tab titles and downloads, preview links and put ChatGPT in the command bar; Ask on Page was removed in August 2025, and there is no agent.
Which runs on Windows, Atlas or Arc?
Arc does. Atlas runs on Mac.
Do Atlas and Arc have phone apps?
Atlas has no phone app: Atlas was Mac only and shut down on Aug 9, 2026. On the phone, Arc: Arc Search on iOS and Android; AI, sign-in and sync end November 23, 2026.
Is ChatGPT Atlas shut down?
OpenAI shut Atlas down on August 9, 2026: it may not open, runs no agent tasks and gets no security updates.
Is Arc still being updated?
Shutdown announced October 22, 2026: new accounts are closed, and Arc for macOS and Windows stops working December 22, 2026.
Is there a third option on a Mac?
Veb, Very Expensive Browser, is free for the Mac: tabs down the side with spaces, folders and Split View, as in Arc; an agent in your signed-in tabs like Atlas’s, on the Claude or ChatGPT plan you already pay for. Claude Code, Codex and any MCP client can drive it too. It runs on WebKit, the engine Safari uses, and takes Chrome extensions. It is new, and its iPhone app is in beta.
More comparisons
- OpenAI help: Evolving Atlas into ChatGPT (retirement notice)
- OpenAI help: Atlas release notes (vertical tabs, tab groups, imports, profiles)
- OpenAI help: Getting started with Atlas (macOS 14.2, Apple silicon)
- OpenAI help: Setting up Atlas (imports, password manager)
- OpenAI help: Atlas data controls and privacy
- 9to5Mac: OpenAI is discontinuing Atlas (Jul 9, 2026, James Sun quote)
- 9to5Mac: what happens when Atlas shuts down (Aug 4, 2026)
- TechRepublic: Atlas shuts down Aug 9
- TechCrunch: Atlas launch (Oct 21, 2025)
- Wikipedia: ChatGPT Atlas (Chromium, timeline)
- OpenAI Help: ChatGPT Atlas retirement
- OpenAI Help: ChatGPT release notes (Jul 9, 2026 deprecation entry)
- TechRadar: Atlas for macOS, Windows, iOS and Android ’coming soon’ (Oct 2025)
- A farewell to Arc: official shutdown timeline and export instructions (October 22, 2026)
- Letter to Arc members, 2025-05-26
- Arc for macOS release notes
- Arc for Windows release notes
- Arc macOS update feed (minimum macOS 13.0; universal binary)
- Arc unsupported devices
- Arc Max help article
- Arc import help article
- Arc ad blocking and Manifest V3
- Arc saved passwords
- Why Arc needs an account
- Arc Spaces
- Arc Split View
- Arc Folders
- Arc Search for iOS and Android
- Arc Search on the App Store (1.48.0, 2026-08-12)
- Arc Search for Android release notes
- Arc privacy policy
- Atlassian completes acquisition of The Browser Company (Business Wire)
- Arc Help: Arc Sync (what syncs, not on Android)
- Google Play: Arc Search (updated Sep 1, 2026)
- Arc Help: Arc Search for iOS release notes (iPad layout, June 20, 2024)
- TidBITS: Arc Search iPhone app now syncs Arc sidebar tabs (2024-04-29)
- Veb Manual: Bringing in from another browser
- Veb Manual: Connecting Claude or ChatGPT
- Veb Manual: Extensions
- Veb Manual: Veb’s tools over MCP
- Veb Manual: Privacy
- Mobile plans
Veb, Very Expensive Browser.
Free for the Mac. Arc’s sidebar, your own Claude or ChatGPT as the agent, Chrome extensions on WebKit.