Annoying browser pop-ups could become a thing of the past thanks to Google’s new AI

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I remember the olden days when the internet was absolutely overwhelmed with pop-up ads that were near-impossible to get rid of. The problem of pop-up advertising has gotten significantly better over the last 20 years, thanks to pop-up blockers, but it still feels like we’re inundated with pop-up messages across the internet. So what’s the answer? According to Google, AI might be able to lend a hand (via TechRadar).

Google Chrome is now testing a new feature called “PermissionsAI”, which is designed to handle all the annoying pop-ups asking you questions. You know the ones I mean, the gray boxes that want to know your location, or are asking to pretty-please agree to receive notifications. You usually refuse permission, but you physically have to take action to get rid of the blasted things.

PermissionsAI uses Google’s “Permissions Predictions Service”, which is a part of Gemini Nano v2. With the help of AI, this allows Chrome to predict whether you’re likely to click yes or no to a specific pop-up. If it thinks you’re going to say no, and it's far more likely that you will, then the pop-up gets hidden away with a “less intrusive UI”.

Less intrusive meaning that you can go and interact with this request later if you wish, but without it being shoved in your face all the time. And the more you say no, the less likely it is that you’ll ever end up seeing one of these requests without actively looking for it.

It is pretty ironic that Google is saving you from being bombarded with pop-ups by bombarding your system with even more AI. I’ve been pretty vocal about my dislike for AI, and the fact it’s being stuffed into our devices without offering anything particularly engaging. But if the likes of Google can keep using AI for things like this, and stop us getting swarmed by pop-ups — whether they’re pop-up ads or permissions notices — then I am all for it.

The downside is that PermissionsAI is not available on the public Chrome browser right now. It’s only available in Chrome Canary, which is where Google tests all its latest experimental features. Here’s just hoping that it doesn’t get canned somewhere along the testing cycle, and eventually does make it to Chrome proper. The sooner, the better, in my opinion.

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Tom is the Tom's Guide's UK Phones Editor, tackling the latest smartphone news and vocally expressing his opinions about upcoming features or changes. It's long way from his days as editor of Gizmodo UK, when pretty much everything was on the table. He’s usually found trying to squeeze another giant Lego set onto the shelf, draining very large cups of coffee, or complaining about how terrible his Smart TV is.