AI Browser > Chrome

Plus: ‘Click-to-cancel’ delayed; Waymo opens to teens

Joey Padgett
July 10, 2025

Hey people!

Welcome back to Forests Over Trees, your tech strategy newsletter. It’s time to zoom-out, connect dots, and (try to) predict the future.

We’re going back to one newsletter per week! We’ll see you every Thursday morning with the most important tech stories and takes.

A quick thank you to this week’s partners:

Photo by Growtika

What’s up: Perplexity launched Comet, an AI-powered web browser, to compete directly with Chrome and Google Search.
- Comet comes with a built-in “Comet Assistant” that can summarize emails, manage tabs, and interact with websites based on what you’re viewing.
- It’ll be bundled in Perplexity’s $200/month “Max” plan.
So what: We have a browser plug-in at work that does similar things…. and let me tell you people — it is a gamechanger! But the TechCrunch reporter who tested Comet flagged some privacy concerns, so there’ll be work to do to get users comfortable before they’ll adopt AI browsers en masse.

What’s up: YouTube is updating its Partner Program rules (effective July 15) to crack down on “mass-produced and repetitious content,” including AI-generated spam.
- New rules target voiceover videos with no commentary, slideshow compilations, and Shorts that recycle formats with minimal originality.
So what: We wrote a few weeks ago about AI flooding the job market, and it’s having the same effect on YouTube… The overwhelming volume of bad content is making it hard for the good content to stand out. Curious to see if Google putting its thumb on the monetization scale will have any impact.

What’s up: A U.S. appeals court halted the FTC's rule that would’ve forced companies to make subscription cancellations as easy as sign-ups.
- The court said the FTC didn’t conduct a proper cost-benefit analysis before issuing the rule.
- The rule targeted businesses like gyms, retailers, and streaming services, aiming to eliminate tactics like chatbot mazes for cancellation.
So what: Call me crazy, but “didn’t conduct a proper cost-benefit analysis” sounds like so much BS… Do better, appeals court!

What’s up: Waymo now allows 14–17 year olds to use its service in Phoenix.
- Parents must invite them and can monitor trips in real time.
- The move follows similar efforts by Uber and aims to boost ridership as Waymo expands nationally.
So what: This is a good idea for Waymo. Younger, digitally native generations are likely more comfortable having robots drive them around (and could be customers for life!).

Recruiter shares LinkedIn Red Flags — This is some great advice. If you’re job searching, it’s worth a read.

The O.G. Solopreneur — I love the new Cheeky Pint podcast from Stripe cofounder John Collison. In this one he interviews an indie hacker named Pieter Levels. Analysts and commentators are speculating that AI will birth the first single-employee unicorn, so it’s a timely conversation.