YabHelium vs Atlas
Helium is a free, open-source Chromium browser by imput, still in beta, with ads blocked by default and Google’s AI and telemetry taken out, on Mac, Windows and Linux.
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.
The short answer
- if you want Chrome’s extensions without Google’s AI or telemetry
- if you want ads blocked from the first launch
- if you use Linux too
- OpenAI shut Atlas down on August 9, 2026: it may not open, runs no agent tasks and gets no security updates
- if you already pay for Claude or ChatGPT and want it to work in your signed-in tabs
- if you miss Arc and want spaces, pins and folders kept, on a Mac
At a glance
Helium and Atlas, with Yab beside them for a Mac.
| What | Helium | ChatGPT Atlas | Yab |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made by | imput | OpenAI | Serafim Korablev |
| Status | Updated | Shut down August 9, 2026 | Updated |
| Runs on | Mac, Windows and Linux | Mac | Mac |
| Phone app | None; desktop only. An iOS build teased in Aug 2026 is being rethought | None; Atlas was Mac only and shut down on Aug 9, 2026 | Not yet |
| Price | Free and open source | Shut down; it was free, with agent mode on paid ChatGPT plans | Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| AI | No AI | An agent that works in 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 | A setting | Yes |
| Spaces | No | Not stated | Yes |
| Split View | Yes | Not stated | Yes |
| Extensions | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store |
| Ad blocker | Built in | Not stated | Built in |
| Open source | Yes | No | No |
Checked October 9, 2026 on each maker’s own pages, linked under Sources. 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. Helium has no AI: Chromium’s Gemini features are taken out. Atlas put ChatGPT beside every page, with optional browser memories and, on paid plans, an agent mode; it no longer works.
Tabs and windowsHelium leads
Helium has tabs down the side as a setting, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep. Atlas has tabs down the side as a setting and folders in the sidebar.
PriceHelium leads
Helium: Free and open source. Atlas: Shut down; it was free, with agent mode on paid ChatGPT plans.
Where it runsHelium leads
Helium runs on Mac, Windows and Linux. Atlas runs on Mac. On a Mac, Helium needs macOS 13 or later and Atlas needs macOS 14.2 or later. Helium has no phone app: desktop only. An iOS build teased in Aug 2026 is being rethought. Atlas has no phone app: Atlas was Mac only and shut down on Aug 9, 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.
PrivacyHelium leads
Helium has an ad blocker built in and open code. Helium makes no requests on first launch and has no analytics; updates, filter lists and extensions go through its services only once you approve. Atlas has no ad blocker of its own. Atlas summed up pages for browser memories and deleted the originals; training on browsing was off by default.
UpdatesHelium leads
Helium is updated as usual. Atlas: OpenAI shut Atlas down on August 9, 2026: it may not open, runs no agent tasks and gets no security updates.
What their pages don’t lead with
Real limits, from the makers’ own words and our own use.
Helium
- Still in beta
- No password manager or sync yet
- No Widevine, so some streaming services won’t play
- No phone app yet
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
Yab, honestly
- Mac only: macOS 15.4 or later, no Windows, iPhone 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
- August 9, 2026Atlas: Atlas shut down
- July 9, 2026Atlas: OpenAI said it will sunset Atlas for the new ChatGPT desktop app
- March 13, 2026Helium: Vertical tabs left experimental status (0.10.3)
- February 15, 2026Helium: Vertical tabs layout added (0.9.1)
- October 21, 2025Atlas: Launched for macOS
Questions
Is Helium free?
Yes. Free and open source.
Is ChatGPT Atlas free?
It no longer works. Shut down; it was free, with agent mode on paid ChatGPT plans.
Which has an AI agent, Helium or Atlas?
Atlas. Helium has no AI: Chromium’s Gemini features are taken out. Atlas put ChatGPT beside every page, with optional browser memories and, on paid plans, an agent mode; it no longer works.
Which runs on Windows, Helium or Atlas?
Helium does. Atlas runs on Mac.
Do Helium and Atlas have phone apps?
Helium has no phone app: desktop only. An iOS build teased in Aug 2026 is being rethought. Atlas has no phone app: Atlas was Mac only and shut down on Aug 9, 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 there a third option on a Mac?
Yab, Yet Another Browser, is free for the Mac: tabs down the side as in Arc, with spaces, folders and Split View; 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 Mac only, and new.
More comparisons
- Helium home page and FAQ
- Helium main repo (beta, GPL-3.0, ungoogled-chromium base, uBlock fork)
- Helium for macOS releases (arm64 and x86_64)
- Helium macOS update feed (minimum 13.0)
- Helium for Windows releases
- Helium for Linux releases
- Helium 0.9.1 release (vertical tabs)
- Helium 0.10.3 release (vertical tabs no longer experimental)
- Helium patch: Memory Saver on by default
- Helium patch: AI features disabled
- Helium patch: browser importers
- Helium patch: Zen importer
- Helium blog: transparency
- PiunikaWeb (Aug 18, 2026): developer teases an iOS build, says Helium targets all platforms
- Developer’s teaser on X (Aug 17, 2026)
- PiunikaWeb (Sep 11, 2026): developer says he dislikes the iOS build and may rethink mobile
- Developer’s follow-up on X
- 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)
- Yab Manual: Bringing in from another browser
- Yab Manual: Connecting Claude or ChatGPT
- Yab Manual: Extensions
- Yab Manual: Yab’s tools over MCP
- Yab Manual: Privacy
Yab, Yet Another Browser.
Free for the Mac. Arc’s sidebar, your own Claude or ChatGPT as the agent, Chrome extensions on WebKit.