Opera Integrates Aria AI Assistant into Opera Mini Browser, Enhancing Accessibility and Functionality

Opera adds its Aria AI assistant to Opera Mini browser | TechCrunch

Norway-based browser company Opera said today that it is making its AI assistant Aria available to Opera Mini users on Android. This move will help users with low-end devices and data constraints access better AI features. Aria AI can help users get the latest news and information on different topics, learn more about various subjects, and generate images. Opera uses a mix of models from OpenAI and Google to get relevant answers. "AI is rapidly becoming an integral part of the daily internet experience - bringing Aria to Opera Mini is a natural addition to our most-downloaded browser. With the addition of our built-in AI, Aria, we're excited to explore how AI can further enhance the feature set our users rely on every day," Jørgen Arnesen, EVP Mobile at Opera, said in a statement. Opera Mini, which launched in 2005, helps users save on data while browsing. The company's claim is that even with the launch of the new AI assistant, it can help in saving data without adding to the app's size. Over the years, the company has struck up partnerships with local telcos in Africa to offer free data to Opera Mini customers. Last year, the company had to shut its free data program in Kenya after authorities issued a directive curbing ads on bookmark tiles interface on browsers. The company said that Opera Mini has over a billion downloads on Android and more than 100 million users worldwide. According to data from app analytics firm Appfigures, Opera Mini has clocked 7.1 million downloads this year worldwide. Apart from launching an AI assistant across all its pages, Opera has been experimenting with AI features, such as a way to control tabs through natural language prompts and an operator that helps you complete tasks autonomously.

Opera : Fully-integrated browser AI, Aria, is now available to millions of Opera Mini users

Oslo, Norway - 16 April 2025 - Opera [NASDAQ: OPRA] is adding its browser AI, Aria, to Opera Mini, the Android-based browser with over 100M users worldwide. With this update Opera Mini is offering users across Africa and the world access to AI that can retrieve up-to-date information from the web, serve as a research assistant, help to learn new skills or summarize content online and create images inside the chat. This means Opera Mini is now providing a powerful AI experience integrated in the browser at no additional cost, all while saving data and not impacting the app's size. "AI is rapidly becoming an integral part of the daily internet experience - bringing Aria to Opera Mini is a natural addition to our most-downloaded browser. With the addition of our built-in AI, Aria, we're excited to explore how AI can further enhance the feature set our users rely on every day," said Jørgen Arnesen, EVP Mobile at Opera. Aria browser AI integrates into Opera's browsers on both desktop and mobile to enable an accessible chat-based interface to AI. It enhances user interaction through information retrieval, text or code generation, image generation and understanding. Aria is powered by Opera's own Composer AI engine, which utilizes both OpenAI and Google AI technologies to provide the most relevant answers, and it integrates image generation through Google's Imagen3 fast model. With today's update, Aria is now available across all Opera browsers. To use Aria, Opera Mini users need to update to the latest version. They can access Aria in the main menu or at the bottom of the start page. Users can then ask questions, generate text and images, summarise text-based content, and get real-time web answers. Opera Mini is the leading browser in Africa, with more than a billion downloads worldwide, thanks to its feature-packed offering - from live football scores to the built-in digital wallet MiniPay. For nearly 20 years, Opera Mini has played a key role in enabling internet access across Africa due to its lightweight design, data compression technology, and partnerships with local network providers to facilitate free data offers of 1.5GB monthly*. On the African continent, the cost of mobile data as a share of GDP is much higher than in Europe or in Brazil, which highlights the digital divide.* According to a recent Opera survey and as a result of the recent price surge in Nigeria, 59%* of respondents in Nigeria say data is too expensive, and over half admit they often run out of data before the end of the month. In the face of these high data costs, Opera Mini helps bridge the digital gap by offering affordable access to new technologies, including AI-powered features. There are more exciting and unique features coming to Opera Mini soon! Opera Mini can be downloaded or updated via the Google Play Store, with Aria available in the browser. About Opera Mini Launched in 2005, Opera Mini is a small, fast, and powerful browser. It comes with unique features such as Data Compression, Offline File Sharing, and a built-in ad-blocker. Today, Opera Mini has been downloaded over 1 billion times on the Google Play Store by people who chose it over the pre-installed browsers on Android mobile devices. Opera Mini has a 4.6 star rating on Google Play and has been reviewed by more than eight million people worldwide. About Opera Opera is a user-centric and innovative software company focused on enabling the best possible internet browsing experience across all devices. Hundreds of millions use Opera web browsers for their unique and secure features on mobile phones and desktop computers. Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Opera is a public company listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol OPRA. Download the Opera web browsers and other Opera products from opera.com. Learn more about Opera at investor.opera.com.