Kagi has released Orion 1.0, a web browser that features privacy by default, zero telemetry, and no integrated ad-tracking technology. Orion supports both Chrome and Firefox extensions and intentionally excludes AI from its core to prioritize security, privacy, and performance. After six years of development, Orion ships for macOS, iOS, and iPadOS with upcoming Linux and Windows versions. Orion is based on WebKit and follows a freemium model.
Orion’s release note explained:
We are watching a worrying trend: AI agents are being rushed directly into the browser core, with deep access to everything you do online – and sometimes even to your local machine.
Security researchers have already documented serious issues in early AI browsers and “agentic” browser features [e.g., hidden or undocumented APIs, Prompt‑injection attacks]
Brave’s security research into “agentic browsers”—specifically Perplexity’s Comet—provides a concrete technical case study for the security risks Orion 1.0 aims to avoid. The research highlights an example of indirect prompt injection, where malicious instructions are hidden within web content, PDFs, or even screenshots to hijack the browser’s AI assistant. Brave’s researchers provided in an online video an attack demonstration in which summarizing a Reddit post could result in an attacker being able to steal money or private data.
Orion strives to avoid the risks of native integration by setting an architectural boundary that allows for the use of AI-powered features without granting automated agents deep, persistent access to the browser’s internal data flows. The release note further explains:
We are against rushing insecure, always‑on agents into the browser core. Your browser should be a secure gateway, not an unvetted co‑pilot wired into everything you do.
Orion ships with no built‑in AI code in its core.
In addition to its security stance, Orion claims a strong focus on privacy. Like LibreWolf, a custom version of Firefox focused on privacy, Orion implements a strict zero-telemetry policy. It further claims to have no ad or tracking technology baked in, with built-in content blocking enabled by default. The release note emphasizes that Orion’s business model lacks incentives for user tracking; the browser is not funded by advertising, but by paid subscriptions to related products (such as Kagi Assistant).
Orion additionally supports both Chrome and Firefox extensions.
As developers have mentioned, while Orion is built on WebKit, Orion itself is not open source software. This has led some in the tech community to question whether its privacy claims can be fully trusted without a public source code review. The Orion team invites developers to independently check the zero-telemetry claim by monitoring outgoing network traffic with tools like Proxyman or mitmproxy.
