By AJ Dellinger
Publication Date: 2026-01-28 18:00:00
Last year, Google fueled up its Chrome browser with its Gemini AI model. Now it’s pressing on the gas. In what the company is calling a “new era of browsing,” Google is introducing a slew of new features that further embeds its Gemini 3 model into its browser, now with a side panel capable of multitasking, integration with Google Apps, and a feature called “auto browse” that can navigate the web on a user’s command.
Google’s preferred headliner for the announcement is its new side panel, which keeps Gemini on screen as a browsing assistant across tabs. The company said that users would be able to perform separate tasks in the sidebar while keeping the browser tab open to their primary focus.
In a demonstration for the press, Google’s Vice President of Chrome, Parisa Tabriz, described the use of the sidebar. “I can have my assistant side-by-side with the content I see in my screen,” she said. “But most importantly, I can actually go ahead and…