Four months on macOS. One month on Windows.
Aside is the best integration of AI into a browser I’ve used so far.
It’s well designed, and the AI feels like a natural part of using the browser. There’s a lot you can do with it. But after a few months, the feature I keep coming back to is routines.
The pages you open just to check
Think about the websites you open regularly just to see what’s new. A feed, a dashboard, a page you’re waiting for someone to update. Sometimes you find something useful. Sometimes nothing has changed, and you close the tab again.
Each check is small. Remembering all of them is the annoying part.
Aside lets you set up recurring work in the browser. You can ask it to check a webpage on a schedule, or sign in to a website and check your feed. Its routines documentation explains how to create, edit, pause, and run those tasks.
Once you start thinking about the pages you visit out of habit, the possibilities get pretty ridiculous.
For example, a routine could check a page you’re following and summarize what’s changed. Or review a feed each morning for updates on a particular topic. Those are starting points: the useful task is whichever check you keep having to remember yourself.
That’s where Aside becomes useful to me. I can hand over the check instead of keeping another reminder in my head. Especially with ADHD, that part matters more to me than a long feature list.
One practical detail: routines currently run on the computer where you created them. According to Aside’s device documentation, that computer needs to stay awake and online for local tasks to keep running. Keep that in mind when choosing a schedule.
Bring the subscription you already use
You can also connect an existing ChatGPT or Claude subscription. Aside supports both, as well as bringing your own API key.
If you’re already paying for either, that’s a good reason to give it a try. Check the current plan details for routine limits and included usage; connecting an AI subscription and choosing an Aside plan are separate things.
For me, the appeal is having AI available in the same place as the pages I want it to work with. I spend enough time in a browser that making those repeated tasks easier is useful every day.
How I found it
Aside is backed by Y Combinator. I attended YC Startup School in San Francisco this July, so I’m always curious to try what companies in that community are building.
But the introduction came from Alexis Chân Gridel. Thanks, Alexis. It’s your best recommendation so far, right next to Convex :)
If you’re curious about AI browsers, I’d strongly recommend giving Aside a try. Start with one recurring check you already do manually and see whether it helps.
What’s the first recurring browser task you’d hand over to it?