Vidy Thatte, a Google DeepMind engineer, has developed an AI-powered iPhone browser that generates every website from scratch [1, 2].
This approach fundamentally alters how users interact with the internet by removing the reliance on traditional server-side page delivery. Instead of downloading existing files from a remote host, the browser uses generative AI to render content on demand.
The application, named Gem, treats every URL entered by the user as a prompt [1]. The AI then writes the HTML code in real time to construct a page based on that prompt [1, 3]. This process allows the software to create a visual representation of a site without actually visiting a hosted server.
Thatte first shared the prototype on X on July 22, 2026 [1]. A TestFlight link was later provided to iPhone users in early August 2026 [2] to allow for external testing of the tool.
"Gem treats every URL as a prompt and generates a site from scratch," Thatte said [1].
The tool represents a shift from the traditional retrieval model of the web. While standard browsers request specific data from a server and render it for the user, Gem uses the URL as a seed for a generative process. This means the resulting page is a synthetic creation rather than a mirrored copy of a live website.
One staff writer at XDA Developers said the tool is not really a browser, but rather an AI that writes HTML on the fly [1]. The project serves as a demonstration of how generative AI can be applied to web navigation, and content rendering.
“"Gem treats every URL as a prompt and generates a site from scratch."”
The Gem prototype suggests a future where the web is synthesized rather than retrieved. If AI can accurately generate the intent and utility of a website from a URL, it could reduce bandwidth costs and bypass traditional hosting. However, this model raises significant questions regarding data accuracy and the loss of a single source of truth, as the AI may hallucinate content that does not exist on the original server.
