Show HN: Confidential AI browser extension – alternative to OpenAI Atlas (github.com)

Privatemode released an experimental Chrome extension that acts as a confidential AI assistant in-browser, pitched as an alternative to OpenAI Atlas. It reads the current page and browsing history and answers questions while relying on a local Privatemode Proxy and Document Store to keep communication private. The proxy performs remote attestation to verify the integrity of the Privatemode AI backend and encrypts data before sending it off-device; prompt caching is recommended to cut latency and token use. The project is a proof-of-concept: you build and load the unpacked extension, run Privatemode Proxy at http://localhost:8080 and Document Store at http://localhost:8081, set PRIVATEMODE_BASE_URL and API key at build time, or use the sidepanel dev server for faster iteration. Significance for AI/ML practitioners lies in demonstrating a browser-native confidential compute workflow—local attestation + encrypted transport—enabling question-answering over sensitive pages without sending raw context insecurely. Technical caveats are important: browsing history and stored documents are saved locally without encryption, the extension has minimal QA/security review, manifest grants localhost permissions, and updates may require resetting stored auth keys. This is not production-ready: expect bugs, breaking changes, and no maintenance guarantees, but it’s a useful starting point for privacy-preserving, client-integrated LLM tooling.