Give ChatGPT on the web control of your browser
Settings → Security and login → Developer mode → Plugins → Create app. A remote MCP URL, so it works where a local server cannot.
Click path walked end to end and verified: August 2026
In short
ChatGPT supports custom apps backed by a remote MCP server. Turn on Developer mode under Settings → Security and login, then go to Plugins → Create app and paste your Vibe relay URL. ChatGPT can then navigate, click, type, scroll, screenshot, and read your real Chrome, including pages behind a login — from the web app, with no local MCP server running and no domain verification or OAuth setup.
The problem
- The ChatGPT desktop app can run a local MCP server; ChatGPT on the web cannot read local config or spawn a process, so it has no route to your browser.
- The built-in browsing tool fetches public pages as an anonymous visitor — anything behind your account is invisible to it.
- That leaves the most useful half of the web (your dashboards, tickets, admin panels) permanently out of reach.
What Vibe MCP changes
- A connector is a URL, so ChatGPT on the web can reach your browser without anything running locally besides the extension.
- The Vibe relay forwards to the Chrome you are already signed into — same tabs, same cookies, same sessions.
- Enable it per conversation, so a chat only touches your browser when you say so.
Install in 3 steps
1Install the Vibe extension in Chrome
Add Vibe AI Browser from the Chrome Web Store (Chrome, Brave, Edge, or any Chromium browser). This is the piece that lets an agent drive the browser you are already logged into — no second browser profile, no re-authentication.
2Copy your agent connection URL from the extension
Click the Vibe icon → Settings → turn on "Enable external AI agent control" → choose Remote (internet) → copy the Agent connection URL. The last path segment is your routing UUID. The connector URL is https://relay.api.vibebrowser.app/mcp/ followed by that UUID. Leave the extension running and remote control on — the connector talks to this browser, so if it is closed there is nothing on the other end.
Vibe extension → Settings → Agent connection URLurlhttps://relay.api.vibebrowser.app/mcp/<your-routing-uuid>3Turn on Developer mode under Settings → Security and login
In ChatGPT on the web, open Settings → Security and login and switch Developer mode ON. This is the step people miss: the create-an-app surface does not appear anywhere until Developer mode is enabled, and it lives under Security and login rather than under Connectors.
4Plugins → Create app, then paste the URL
Still in Settings, go to Plugins and click Create app. Give it a name, paste the connector URL from step 2 into the MCP server URL field, and create it. ChatGPT connects and discovers the actions. There is no domain verification, no allowlist, and no OAuth step. Then enable the app for a conversation before asking ChatGPT to open a page. Connectors and apps are a paid-plan feature, and the developer-mode surface moves around between releases — if you cannot find it, the ChatGPT desktop app path works today with no relay.
Your relay URL / extension UUID grants live control of your browser session. Treat it like a password: never commit it or paste it into a shared chat.
Your connector URL is a password. Treat it like one.
That URL is a bearer capability for your real, logged-in browser. There is no second factor: anyone who holds it can open your tabs, read the pages you are signed into, and act as you. Nothing else is needed to use it.
- Never paste it into a shared chat, a ticket, a README, a screenshot, or a support thread. Redact the UUID before sharing anything.
- Never commit it to a repo or write it into a config file that gets committed. Keep it out of shell history and CI logs.
- If it leaks — or you are unsure — open the Vibe extension settings and regenerate the connection URL. The old UUID stops routing immediately, and you re-paste the new URL into the connector.
- Turn "Enable external AI agent control" off when you are not using it. With it off, the URL routes nowhere.
What “connected” looks like
- The app appears in the Plugins list with its name, and opening it shows the discovered actions rather than an error.
- In a conversation, the app is selectable from the tools/apps menu and can be toggled on for that chat.
- On the first real request, ChatGPT shows a sequence of tool calls — expect several, including Navigate page — and your own browser visibly navigates while it works. Six tool calls for a simple lookup is normal, not a fault.
Verify it actually works
Do not trust a green checkmark. Run this prompt in a conversation with the connector enabled and check the answer yourself.
Go to duckduckgo.com and find out when the first GPT model was released.Expected answer: 2018
Pick this over "open google.com" because a wrong answer is unmistakable: the assistant cannot satisfy it from memory-free small talk, and you can watch the tab actually navigate. If the answer comes back as 2018 and you saw your browser move, the connector is wired end to end. If the assistant answers 2018 without your browser doing anything, it answered from its own knowledge — ask it again and require it to cite the page it opened.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The client rejects the URL with a 401, or tool calls fail with 401 Unauthorized. | The routing UUID in the URL is wrong, mistyped, or no longer valid — usually because it was regenerated in the extension after you pasted it. | Re-copy the Agent connection URL from the Vibe extension settings and re-paste the whole URL. Check you kept the /mcp/ path segment and did not drop or duplicate a character at either end. |
| The connector saved fine and tools are listed, but every tool call errors or hangs. | Nothing is on the other end of the relay: the browser with the Vibe extension is closed, or external agent control is switched off, or the mode is set to Local instead of Remote (internet). | Open the browser that has the Vibe extension, click the Vibe icon → Settings, confirm "Enable external AI agent control" is on and the mode is Remote (internet). Then retry the prompt. |
| No tools show up at all after saving the connector. | The URL points at the plain relay root rather than your routing path, so there is no session to enumerate tools for. | The URL must be https://relay.api.vibebrowser.app/mcp/<your-routing-uuid> — with the UUID as the last path segment. Remove the connector, re-add it with the full URL, and reload the page. |
| The assistant answers the question but your browser never moved. | It answered from its own knowledge instead of calling a tool. This is a prompt problem, not a connection problem. | Re-ask and require evidence: "Use your browser tools to open duckduckgo.com, then tell me which page you read." If it still refuses, check the connector is toggled on for that specific conversation. |
Tools ChatGPT connectors gets
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
| navigate_to_url | Navigate to any URL |
| go_back / go_forward | Browser history navigation |
| click | Click elements on the page |
| type / fill | Enter text into inputs |
| scroll | Scroll the page |
| take_screenshot | Capture screenshots |
| get_page_content | Extract page text or HTML |
| get_tabs / create_new_tab / switch_to_tab / close_tab | Tab management |
| keyboard_shortcut | Press keyboard combinations |
| web_search | Search the web |
How it compares
| Feature | Vibe MCP | Playwright MCP | BrowserMCP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-agent support | Yes | No | No |
| Uses your browser profile | Yes | No | No |
| Logged-in sessions | Yes | No | No |
| No separate browser | Yes | No | No |
| Local & private | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Content-script based | Yes | No | No |
ChatGPT connectors browser control — FAQ
- Can ChatGPT on the web control my browser?
- Yes, through a custom app pointed at a remote MCP server. ChatGPT web cannot read local Codex config or run a local process, so the local STDIO path does not apply there — the Vibe relay URL does.
- Where is developer mode in ChatGPT?
- Settings → Security and login. Not under Connectors, which is where most guides send you. Switch Developer mode on there, and the Plugins → Create app surface becomes available.
- Do I need to verify a domain or set up OAuth?
- No. Creating the app needs nothing but the URL — no domain verification, no allowlist request, and no OAuth configuration.
- Should I use this or the ChatGPT desktop app integration?
- Prefer the desktop app if you are on it: that path is local STDIO, so page content never leaves your machine. Use the connector when you are in ChatGPT on the web, where a local server is not an option.
- Does this work with Codex CLI?
- Codex CLI can use either path — it can spawn the local MCP server, and it can also point at a remote MCP URL with headers. The local path is simpler there; see the Codex CLI page.
- Do I still need to install anything?
- Only the Vibe Chrome extension. On the remote-connector path there is no npx command and no local MCP server — the hosted assistant talks to the Vibe relay over HTTPS, and the relay forwards to your extension.
- Do I need domain verification, an allowlist, or OAuth?
- No. Neither Claude nor ChatGPT requires domain verification, an allowlist entry, or an OAuth flow for this connector. You paste a URL and save. The routing UUID inside the URL is the only credential involved.
- Is the UUID in the URL a secret?
- Yes. That UUID is the credential that routes an agent to your browser — anyone who has it can drive your logged-in session. Treat the connector URL like a password: never post it in a shared chat, screenshot, README, or issue. If it leaks, regenerate it in the Vibe extension settings and paste the new URL into the connector.
- What is the difference between this and the local MCP server?
- The local path (npx @vibebrowser/mcp) runs on your machine and suits desktop clients that can spawn a process — Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, Codex CLI. The remote path suits hosted assistants that only accept a URL. Both end up driving the same Chrome tab through the same extension.
- Does my page content go through your servers on this path?
- Yes — unlike the local STDIO path, tool calls and their results traverse the Vibe relay, because the assistant is running in the vendor cloud and cannot reach your machine directly. If you need page content to never leave your machine, use the local MCP server with a desktop client instead.
Works with your other agents too
The same MCP server powers every client. Multiple agents can drive the same browser at once.
Ready to connect ChatGPT connectors?
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