Am not usually one to play with desktop software - much if it just has an overall UX that hasn’t moved forward in 40+ years. But, was intrigued to take a look at what The Browser Company is doing with Dia, a web browser distinct from the Arc browser they’d been pushing. At the first glance, it is no different than many ”AI tools” in that it’s largely text-chat based. But, then you push forward a bit and you’d see some pretty cool bits right under the covers. For example, this unreleased bit one of their team posted on Twitter/X the other day.

screenshot of Dia browser tweet doing experimental feature

This was a great example of taking something that is pretty clear in use - having a number of browser tabs open, and then programmatically using them to complete other actions. It isn’t a completely new take on the web browser, but it is a revision to how persons who live in many tabs might approach how they use information around them. We could see how something like this could integrate within our notable reads shape of sharing - but then also how those reads shape the work we end up doing (sensemaking and synthesis).

We used Dia in a recent engagement to demonstrate the effacy of analysizing, correcting, and reporting accessibility issues in a staging environment. Where some of the analysis would have taken the better part of hours, this aspect took moments. Offering corrections happened faster. Making a sensible and relatable report also took moments. It was a total of four prompts, and in this case, we didn’t even leverage having Dia reference anything more than the site and one governance document. For pointing folks to”what needs to matter for meeting usability and customer experience goals,’ using Dia extended the browser to more of a research assistant. We did similar with the Humane AiPin; turning refreshed behaviors into desired results.

Uncovering new and novel uses of one’s tools is part of what the current trend of “AI/LLM tools” should provoke. Will it challenge some things you hold dear? Yup. Will it make some folks feel as if they missed the boat on previous convos? Yup. Is there still opportunity to advance your work and effort forward? Yup. You have to choose amongst your competency with how some older tools are evolving, and your tolerance for evolving your methods. It’s not always point-and-click, but it is quite possible to find something new in this forest of ideas.

Update! Neat to see The Browser Company tall of how Dia came to be in their newsletter - posted after we published.