The Browser Wars Are Back

This Time AI Agents Are in Control.

AuthorAuthor

Peter Benei & Torsten Sandor
July 15, 2025

In partnership with

Remember the late 90s? The first browser war between Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator? Then came a second battle with multiple contenders, and Chrome emerged as the dominant force.

Now, the third browser war is just beginning. And this time, AI is the reason.

Browsers aren’t just passive windows to the internet anymore. AI is becoming an integral part of how we work, browse, and create. For years, we’ve relied on plugins, extensions, and add-ons to enhance our productivity. Not anymore.

AI agents are embedding themselves directly into our browsing experience:

  • Highlight text to get instant insights.

  • Summarize a 40-minute webinar in seconds.

  • Create a full campaign report without leaving your tab.

Perplexity’s launch of Comet is the opening shot. OpenAI’s browser is reportedly imminent. Meta and Google are racing to bring agentic workflows into every tab.

The future of work, productivity, and marketing will depend on the capabilities of these AI-powered browsers.

Are your workflows ready for this shift?

— Peter & Torsten

Peter Benei | Co-author

Consultant at Anywhere Consulting

Torsten Sandor | Co-author

Senior Director of Marketing at Appen

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Comet Ignites the Browser Wars

The future of work might live inside your browser

Perplexity just unveiled its AI-powered browser “Comet,” combining its answer engine and an autonomous agent into a Chrome-based app.

Highlight any text and a side panel instantly summarizes, cites, and even executes tasks directly on the page.

In our tests:

  • We asked Comet to critique a landing page copy and generate A/B versions without leaving the browser.

  • Opened Meta Ads Manager and let the agent click through to build a week-over-week performance report.

  • Skimmed a 40-minute YouTube webinar in seconds.

We’re preparing a hands-on demo to show you how to integrate Comet into your daily workflows. Stay tuned.

Despite early media buzz, Comet isn’t limited to the $200 “Max” tier. Perplexity Pro users ($20/month) can join the waitlist and typically gain access within a few days.

Just hours after Comet’s release, Reuters leaked news that OpenAI’s own browser is imminent. A clear sign that Chrome’s dominance is under siege.

Why it matters for you

Tabs, reports, and dashboards are converging into a single agentic workspace. Whoever controls that layer will shape decisions around ad spend, content audits, and even board reports.

What to do next?

» Join the waitlist. Get your team’s power users on Perplexity Pro’s waitlist for Comet. At $20/month, it’s a low-risk, high-upside move.

» Spot agentic workflows. Task your team to identify 3–5 repetitive, browser-based workflows that an AI agent could automate (e.g., competitor analysis, social monitoring, sales prospecting).

» Redesign processes for AI. Start mapping workflows with the assumption that an AI agent will execute them. Prioritize structured data and machine-friendly interfaces.

» Track OpenAI’s launch. Their browser could achieve fast adoption with feature parity and brand strength.

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The CXO’s AI Dilemma

Leaders are racing to sound smart on AI, but few are moving the needle

An Icertis survey of 1,000 global CXOs found that 80% feel pressured to grasp AI concepts they previously delegated. The same proportion struggles to pinpoint which AI bets will deliver impact.

Top stressors include “AI washing” hype (51%) and the breakneck pace of change (45%). Many leaders confessed to taking informal “crash courses” in prompt engineering and model governance just to sound credible in board presentations.

Yet only 34% have linked AI spend to clear KPIs. A gap that investors are poised to scrutinize.

Source: Icertis

Why it matters for marketers

When leadership can’t tell a chatbot from an agentic workflow, budgets stall and pilots languish. Mastery at the very top is fast becoming a competitive moat.

What to do next?

» Level up your AI literacy. Block time weekly to deepen your understanding of AI, not just technical mechanics but strategic implications. Follow trusted voices, read insights (like this newsletter), or enroll in an executive AI program.

» Form a cross-functional AI council. Unite leaders from marketing, sales, product, and finance to assess and prioritize AI initiatives, ensuring alignment and business relevance.

» Start small but smart. Launch compact, high-impact pilots instead of giant all-or-nothing AI projects. Iterate quickly and build momentum.

» Normalize safe-to-fail experiments. Encourage teams to explore new AI tools and workflows. Even failed experiments yield critical insights for scaling success.

Become the Next-Gen Marketing Leader

If The Great Restructuring isn’t just a headline to you, but a call to rethink how you lead, this is for you.

We’re launching a community for marketing leaders navigating the challenges of AI-driven change.

A space for CMOs, founders, and growth leaders to stay relevant, rewire their orgs for the AI era, and connect with peers shaping the future of work.

It’s built for the Autonomous Leaders we wrote about in our Manifesto—those ready to trade micromanagement for systems, and effort for leverage.

» Reply to this email to get on the early-access list.

The waiting list opens soon.

Grok 4 Arrives: Benchmarks vs. Boardroom Reality

Impressive scores, but does it deliver for marketers?

Elon Musk’s xAI launched Grok 4 alongside a $300/month “SuperGrok Heavy” tier, promising “physicist-grade” reasoning. Independent tests confirm strong benchmark scores, but stellar performance in controlled environments doesn’t always translate to real-world impact.

In our evaluations of marketing-specific tasks, including crafting campaign strategies, writing nuanced brand copy, and analyzing customer data, Grok 4 lags behind ChatGPT‑o3, Claude 4, and Gemini 2.5 Pro.

Why it matters for marketers

Model selection is fragmented by job-to-be-done. Grok may shine in engineering-heavy contexts but falls short when applied to finely tuned brand and marketing workflows.

What to do next?

» Run marketing-specific tests. Don’t trust public benchmarks alone. Put Grok, GPT, Claude, and Gemini through the paces on your core workflows.

» Stay model-agnostic. Design your team’s processes to swap in new models as they evolve easily. This flexibility will protect you from vendor lock-in.

» Focus on ROI, not hype. Evaluate models based on their measurable impact on productivity and output, not their press releases or leaderboard rankings.

Google: AI Is Fine, YouTube: Not That Fast

No, using AI for content production won’t hurt your SEO

A new Ahrefs study of 600,000 websites found no evidence that AI-generated text hurts Google rankings. In fact, 86% of top-ranked pages used some AI assistance.

Meanwhile, YouTube announced it will demonetize “mass-produced or repetitive” videos, cracking down on the flood of auto-slideshow channels derided as “AI slop.” Offenders risk reduced reach and eligibility for content reviews.

The message is clear: AI text is mainstream SEO, but AI-driven low-effort video tactics are under scrutiny.

Source: ahrefs

Why it matters for marketers

The debate is no longer about whether AI fits into content workflows, but how. AI can help scale high-quality written content, but low-effort video shortcuts are headed for the penalty box.

What to do next?

» Establish a human-in-the-loop policy. Ensure every AI-generated asset is reviewed and refined by a human for quality, accuracy, and brand alignment.

» Tailor strategies by platform. Don’t assume AI content works everywhere. What drives blog growth might harm your YouTube performance.

» Double down on creative direction. Hire and train for roles focused on taste and strategic oversight. In an age of infinite content, curation and refinement are critical advantages.

Prime Day Forecast: AI Traffic to Surge 3,200%

Generative AI tools are now driving shoppers to checkout

Adobe’s Digital Insights team projects that U.S. shoppers arriving via generative AI, chatbots, AI browsers, and model-powered assistants will increase by 32 times over last year, contributing to an estimated $24 billion in Prime Day sales across the four-day event.

While AI traffic still represents a single-digit share today, its growth curve outpaces every other channel. Adobe credits faster product Q&A in chat and AI-curated deal feeds that eliminate friction between “research” and “buy.”

If your brand data isn’t model-readable, or worse, models hallucinate about you, you’re invisible at checkout.

Auguste Rodin - The Thinker

Why it matters for marketers

Just as comparison-shopping engines rewired e-commerce in the 2000s, AI assistants are becoming a primary layer of referral. Early movers feeding clean product data and positive sentiment to LLMs will win an outsized share.

What to do next?

» Create an AI brand visibility strategy. Audit how your brand and products appear in leading AI models and chatbots.

» Optimize product data for machines. Clean, structured product feeds and metadata are the new SEO for AI agents.

» Double down on reviews and validation. AI models rely on trusted human feedback—positive customer reviews are a key asset.

» Shift experimental budgets. Invest in advertising and partnerships within AI platforms and conversational interfaces.

» Get our guide on AI Brand Visibility

AI is transforming how brands are discovered, and SEO is no longer enough.

AI tools are reshaping search. The new challenge isn’t ranking on Google, it’s being recognized, trusted, and referenced by AI systems.

Ask yourself:

  • Are you mentioned in credible third-party sources?

  • Is your content structured so AIs can understand it?

  • Are you aware of where AI tools get their data from?

If not, you’re invisible. We’ve distilled the strategic playbook into a single briefing, “Brand Visibility in the Age of AI,” available exclusively to AI Ready CMO referrers.

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The future of visibility isn’t search, it’s AI. Make sure your brand isn’t invisible.

Moonvalley’s Marey Offers “Licensed-Only” Video Generation

Safe-to-use AI video is finally hitting the market

LA-based Moonvalley just opened its Marey model to the public on a credit plan: $14.99 for 100 clips (up to 5 seconds each), scaling to $149 for 1,000 clips.

Unlike rivals facing lawsuits, Moonvalley claims Marey was trained exclusively on licensed or proprietary footage. This “commercially safe” positioning is attracting indie agencies eager to cut B-roll costs by 40%.

The startup also raised $84 million to expand compute for longer, higher-resolution clips.

Example image created by Moonvalley

Why it matters for marketers

Legal clarity unlocks enterprise budgets. Marketing teams can finally test text-to-video tools, knowing their content won’t resemble a Pixar frame or get pulled down for copyright violations months later.

What to do next?

» Prioritize ‘commercially safe’ models. For high-visibility brand campaigns, choose AI tools that guarantee licensed training data.

» Update your vendor checklist. Add questions about data sourcing and IP indemnification when evaluating AI content tools.

» Loop in legal early. Align with your legal team now to set clear guidelines on AI-generated content and mitigate downstream risks.

AI Tool Of The Week: n8n

CMOs don’t have time for manual workflows. n8n enables you to automate critical marketing operations, such as lead scoring, campaign reporting, and CRM updates, without requiring code.

It’s a flexible, enterprise-ready tool that connects over 350 apps, allowing your team to focus on growth, not busywork.

Inside the Perplexity Fellowship

How Nvidia’s CEO built a $3T company

At the latest Perplexity Business Fellowship session, Jensen Huang (Nvidia CEO) joined Aravind Srinivas (Perplexity CEO) to share decades of leadership lessons and how to survive and thrive through failure. Here’s what stood out.

  1. Pivoting from failure builds resilience. Nvidia’s flop with NV1 forced a radical shift to triangle-based graphics in NV3. Survival demanded creativity, brutal honesty, and the courage to pivot fast.

  2. Strategy is bigger than products. Success came from building ecosystems and positioning Nvidia in the market, not just designing great chips.

  3. Go all-in on bold bets. Huang “bet the company” on CUDA and again on quantum-classical computing, knowing partial commitment leads to mediocrity.

  4. Honesty creates trust. After NV2 failed, Huang told Sega to switch suppliers, but still requested that they pay Nvidia. That move saved the company and defined his leadership style.

  5. Grow people, don’t replace them. Struggling employees weren’t fired. Instead, Huang focused on “torturing people to greatness,” helping them evolve into high performers.

  6. Longevity unlocks transformation. Staying in the CEO role for decades gave Huang time to experiment, fail, and ultimately drive Nvidia’s most significant breakthroughs.

  7. Patience beats speed. Nvidia avoids artificial deadlines and focuses on creating perfect designs, believing that discipline saves time and money in the long term.

  8. Prompting AI = prompting humans. Huang compares leading teams to prompting AI: great leaders frame problems and set constraints that spark creativity.

  9. The next AI frontier is physical. Huang predicts that AI-driven robots will transform factories, hospitals, and logistics within the next five years.

  10. Human-centered leadership wins. Huang finds inspiration in everyday people—a dishwasher, a Kyoto gardener—valuing presence, pride, and patience over buzzwords.

❝

I believe the journey is the goal—enjoying the work every single day is 90% of the battle.

Jensen Huang, Founder, President, and CEO of NVIDIA

CMO Tips

The 5 Core Skills Every AI-Era Marketer Needs

If you think “prompt engineering” is the key to AI success, think again. Prompting is a tactic, not a skill. The real edge for modern CMOs comes from designing systems, not just talking to them.

Here are 5 compound skills to cultivate in your team:

  1. Systems thinking – Break problems into inputs, logic, and outputs.

  2. Workflow literacy – See marketing as interconnected flows.

  3. Creative direction – Guide, prompt, and refine AI-generated assets.

  4. Interpretation & feedback – Apply judgment to iterate on AI outputs.

  5. Human–AI collaboration – Know when to delegate to AI vs. when to take control.

How to build them?

You don’t teach these skills in a classroom. You practice them together. Try these team ritual examples:

  • Prompt journals – Share one task broken into input → logic → output.

  • Flow Fridays – Map a process and redesign it with AI in mind.

  • AI output clinics – Review AI outputs as a team to sharpen judgment.

  • Prompt re-runs – Tweak workflows and compare AI results.

  • Bot debriefs – After using AI, document what worked and what didn’t.

Tools change. These skills compound—build them now to stay ahead.

Is your team ready for this shift?

Run our AI Readiness Assessment to find out where you stand and how to level up. Our assessment works not just for CMOs but also for individual marketers & marketing teams.

Rapid-Fire News

Quick scans on things that mattered last week.

1. Innovation by Hallucination
A music sheet scanning company discovered ChatGPT was (wrongly) telling users their product had a feature. After enough requests, they built it.
» For marketers: AI ‘hallucinations’ can surface unexpected demand signals—and even inspire product roadmaps.

2. Microsoft’s $500M AI Savings
Microsoft saved $500M last year in call center operations thanks to AI, while announcing major job cuts.
» For marketers: Expect the efficiency narrative to intensify—AI adoption often comes with workforce restructuring.

3. AI Culls HR Ranks
Indeed and Glassdoor are cutting 1,300 jobs, citing AI as a key driver of restructuring.
» For marketers: HR and recruiting are being reshaped—AI is already conducting interviews at some major firms.

4. Salesforce Hits 1M AI Conversations
Salesforce AI agents have now handled over one million customer interactions with positive feedback.
» For marketers: AI-driven customer engagement is scaling fast—time to assess if your org can keep up.

5. A New Open Source Champion
Moonshot AI’s Kimi K2 outperforms GPT‑4 in key benchmarks, and it’s fully open source.
» For marketers: Powerful, free models mean more teams can experiment without enterprise price tags.

Autonomous Leadership Advice

We published our Autonomous Leadership Manifesto. It helps CMOs to guide their teams through an AI-powered future.

The manifesto ends with 50 thesis points on how we should lead in an AI-enabled era. The first 10 thesis points are:

Clarity over control

Leadership begins with definition, not direction.

  1. If your team needs constant reminders, your system lacks clarity.

  2. The best way to speed up your team is to slow down your instructions.

  3. A vague strategy creates busy leaders. Precise systems make you optional.

  4. Every unclear expectation becomes a future bottleneck.

  5. Leaders who rely on visibility often lack alignment.

  6. If your presence is the only source of clarity, you're not leading. You're babysitting.

  7. Good leadership makes fewer decisions by making better ones earlier.

  8. You can't scale what you haven't defined.

  9. When in doubt, simplify the system before adding supervision.

  10. Your job is to create clarity and then disappear without chaos.

The AI stack is shifting faster than most leaders can react, and those who move first will define how work, creativity, and visibility evolve in this new era.

If you found these insights helpful, forward this to one marketing leader in your circle who needs to level up for the AI age.

Use your unique link to unlock free guides for referrals.

— Peter & Torsten

» PS: Want to upgrade your marketing ops with AI? We offer consulting for CMOs.