Google’s ‘Disco’ Crafts Web Apps from Browser Tabs Using Gemini AI
▼ Summary
– Google introduced Disco, a new AI experiment powered by Gemini that turns open browser tabs into custom applications called “GenTabs.”
– GenTabs proactively suggests and builds interactive web apps to help complete tasks related to your browsing, such as visualizing study topics or creating meal plans.
– These custom apps are generated on the fly using Gemini 3, leveraging your browser information and chat history, and can be refined with natural language commands.
– Unlike building a standalone AI browser, Google is integrating this AI deeper into Chrome, focusing on your overall browsing across multiple tabs.
– The Disco feature with GenTabs is initially available only to a limited number of testers via Google Labs, with plans for it to be the first of many Disco features.
Google has unveiled a new experimental tool called Disco, powered by its Gemini AI, designed to transform your open browser tabs into functional web applications. This innovative feature, currently in testing, aims to streamline how users interact with information online by creating personalized tools directly from their browsing activity. The core of this experiment is a function named GenTabs, which actively proposes interactive web apps to assist with tasks related to your current web research and allows for building custom apps through simple written prompts.
Imagine you are deeply researching a complex topic. GenTabs might suggest constructing a web app to visually map out the information, potentially making intricate concepts easier to grasp. In a more everyday situation, you could use it to compile a weekly meal plan from several recipe websites or to organize a detailed itinerary while looking at travel blogs and hotel reviews.
While some AI chatbots can assist with similar planning, GenTabs distinguishes itself by generating these tailored experiences instantly. It leverages the advanced capabilities of Gemini 3, drawing upon the content from your open browser tabs and your previous Gemini chat history. Once the initial app is created, you can continue to adjust and improve it using natural language instructions. Google emphasizes that any AI-generated content within these GenTabs will maintain links back to the original source material for reference and verification.
This move is part of Google’s broader strategy to deeply integrate artificial intelligence into the web browsing experience. Rather than developing a separate AI-centric browser, the company has embedded its Gemini assistant directly into Chrome, where it can already answer questions about a webpage. GenTabs expands this focus beyond a single page, considering your entire browsing session across multiple tabs, whether for work, education, or personal projects.
Access to Disco and the GenTabs feature is initially very limited. Google is launching it to a select group of testers through its Google Labs platform to gather feedback on usability and functionality. The company has indicated that promising concepts developed within the Disco experiment could eventually be integrated into its more widely used products. Furthermore, Google notes that GenTabs represents just the “first feature” being trialed, suggesting more AI-powered tools from the Disco project may emerge in the future. Interested users can join a waitlist to download the Disco app, with availability starting on macOS.
(Source: TechCrunch)
