Changelog

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Product updates

• Added spending cap management to the dashboard billing page, allowing org admins to set and update spending limits directly from the UI. Currently in limited preview.
• Enhanced browser stealth with additional evasion techniques.
• Fixed navigator fingerprint gaps (maxTouchPoints, userAgentData brands, screen.availHeight) to better match real desktop Chrome behavior.
• Added disable_default_proxy option for stealth browsers, allowing users to disable the default proxy on stealth-mode browsers.
• Improved error responses for browser process start failures.

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Documentation updates

• Added API rate limiting documentation.
• Documented the disable_default_proxy option for stealth browsers.
• Updated live view embedding docs with iframe focus tips, clipboard sharing guidance, and CSP configuration.
• Documented managed auth re-authentication triggers.

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Product updates

• Added support for custom Chrome policy.json on browser pools, enabling users to configure Chrome settings like popups, PDF behavior, and homepage without manual workarounds.
• Updated the CLI to prioritize API key authentication over OAuth, and added new commands and flags.
• Improved browser pool acquisition speed.
• Improved CDP proxy reconnect behavior after Chromium restart, preventing broken browser sessions.
• Corrected Safari clipboard sync in the dashboard live view, resolving copy/paste issues for users viewing browser sessions from Safari.
• Improved mouse movement in live view.

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Documentation updates

• Added an FAQ entry for debugging managed auth sessions.
• Updated Managed Auth documentation to cover CUA support, the PATCH endpoint, and auto-allowed SSO domains.

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Product updates

• Launched GPU acceleration for cloud browsers. GPU acceleration attaches a virtual GPU to your cloud browser, dramatically speeding up agents on sites that use canvases, are heavy on visualizations, or rely on WebGL. In our internal benchmarks, GPU-accelerated browsers hit 60 fps —6x faster than regular browsers— making browsing feel faster pretty much everywhere on the internet. GPU acceleration is available as a research preview on Startup and Enterprise plans.
• Increased Chromium’s default maximum connections per proxy to 16, improving throughput for proxy-based browser sessions.
• Updated the live view logo and favicon to reflect the latest Kernel branding.
• Updated OpenAI CUA templates to use Kernel’s native Computer Controls API instead of Playwright for improved reliability and performance.
• Fixed an issue where deleted browser sessions couldn’t be listed or downloaded in session replays via the CLI.

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Documentation updates

• Added new docs for GPU acceleration.
• Added ZIP code targeting documentation for residential proxies.
• Clarified download behavior for programmatic file downloads.
• Reorganized documentation to make Managed Auth and Browser Pools more prominent and accessible.

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Product updates

• Added WebDriver BiDi support for cloud browsers through a new partnership with Vibium. AI agents can now use Vibium to connect to Kernel and navigate pages, fill forms, click buttons, and take screenshots across thousands of cloud browsers running in parallel.
• Launched Kernel Eval Protocol, an open-source repo that pairs Kernel Browser Pools with Fireworks RFT and Eval Protocol to evaluate and fine-tune VLM browser agents using reinforcement learning.
• Added a usage field to the browser session details API response, which returns session metrics like uptime_ms. Use this to track session duration and build billing or analytics workflows around your browser usage.
• Extended smooth Bezier curve mouse movements to click and drag operations, and added --smooth and --duration-ms flags to the move-mouse command in the CLI for more natural-looking browser interactions.
• Improved headless viewport resize performance by using a CDP fast path, reducing resize time from ~5 seconds to ~10 milliseconds.
• Added support for runtime proxy configuration swapping, enabling you to change a browser’s proxy settings mid-session without restarting.

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Documentation updates

• Added a new Vibium integration guide with CLI examples and setup instructions.
• Added smooth mouse movement and drag documentation with CLI one-liner examples.
• Improved Web Bot Auth page readability with clearer formatting.

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Product updates

• Added support for mobile and tablet viewports, enabling browser automation at phone and tablet screen sizes.
• Added a kernel status command to the CLI for checking API and service health at a glance.
• Added a --force flag to kernel browsers update for resizing the viewport during an active recording, which gracefully stops and restarts the recording.
• Improved Managed Auth MFA handling by resolving MFA options by label, type, or display string for more reliable multi-factor authentication flows.
• Enhanced auth connection output in the CLI with richer details from kernel auth connections get and kernel auth connections list.
• Added a Pool column and --query flag to kernel browsers list in the CLI for easier filtering and identification of pooled browsers.
• Updated the Anthropic computer use template to default to use claude-sonnet-4-6 for improved agent performance.
• Fixed start session replay error.
• Updated localStorage to persist across profile sessions.
• Fixed scroll notch count handling in computer use templates.
• Fixed an anti-echo guard issue that could cause video sync problems in live view.

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Documentation updates

• Renamed “Scaling in Production” to Reserved Browsers and added a new On-Demand Browsers section for clearer guidance on browser provisioning strategies.
• Added mobile and tablet viewport configurations with supported screen sizes and usage guidance.
• Added proxy-bypass-hosts documentation for configuring proxy bypass lists on browser pools.
• Documented the --force flag for viewport resizing during active recordings.
• Added viewport configuration examples to browser pool documentation.

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Product updates

• We launched our new look! Our visual identity has been updated across our website, product, and docs.
• Important: Persistent browser functionality will be end-of-life’d as of May 18th. If you’re using this functionality, you’ve received an email from us with next steps. Please reach out for further support.
• Improved the MCP server by adding 21 new tools covering browser pools, computer controls, proxies, extensions, and more. Consolidated 36 individual tools into 10 streamlined tools and enhanced the computer_action tool to support executing multiple actions in a single call.
• Added API support for clipboard operations, enabling programmatic copy/paste between your automation code and the remote browser.
• Introduced human-like Bezier curve mouse movements for more natural-looking browser interactions that better evade bot detection.
• Added an option to disable live view logging, reducing noise when debugging browser sessions.
• Added kernel deploy delete and kernel app delete commands to the CLI for removing deployments and apps.
• Added server-side session ID search to the dashboard, allowing users to find past browser sessions by ID without loading them all locally.
• Added profile pagination and search to the dashboard and CLI, fixing crashes for users with large numbers of profiles.
• Pre-installed ssh and websocat in browser images for easier debugging and WebSocket testing.
• Added more fonts to browser images for better rendering of international content.
• Improved profile upload performance by buffering zstd archives in memory instead of writing to temp files.

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Documentation updates

• Added a new Yutori computer use integration guide with setup instructions and code examples.
• Clarified viewport configuration recommendations with guidance on choosing the right resolution for your use case.

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Product updates

• Added mouse position tracking to the CLI, enabling retrieval of current mouse coordinates.
• Updated Yutori computer use templates to support the n1-latest model for improved agent performance.
• Updated Managed Auth by adding subdomain-based sign-in support, better error handling for 401 Unauthorized and 410 Gone responses, and enhanced error messaging with structured error codes and actionable guidance.
• Improved browser display by auto-toggling Chromium app mode on small viewports for a cleaner, more immersive experience.
• Fixed screen resize accuracy by removing unnecessary rounding in ChangeScreenSize to ensure pixel-perfect display dimensions.

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Documentation updates

• Enhanced secrets documentation with practical examples for LLM-powered applications and detailed guidance for deploying apps with environment file configurations.

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Product updates

• Launched Web Bot Auth in partnership with Vercel, enabling agents to cryptographically sign requests and prove they’re legitimate instead of getting blocked by bot detection.
• Released Managed Auth, simplifying authentication by securely logging into any site without custom auth flows or exposing credentials to the LLM, and maintaining up-to-date credentials.
• Added a POST /computer/batch endpoint for executing multiple computer actions in a single API call, reducing round-trip latency for complex automations.
• Improved the CLI by adding new commands for managing auth connections, supporting -o json output for kernel ssh --setup-only, allowing pool names as positional arguments in kernel browser-pools create, and enabling file exclusions when publishing extensions.
• Improved input reliability with context-aware timing in key press and mouse drag operations.
• Fixed an issue where stealth mode browsers couldn’t access plain HTTP websites due to forced HTTPS redirects.

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Documentation updates

• Clarified pricing for headful browser sessions.
• Added comprehensive Managed Auth documentation, including billing guidance.

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Product updates

• Added a /json endpoint to the CDP proxy, enabling native Playwright connectOverCDP() connections.
• Launched an API to get the current cursor position, which is useful for debugging and building adaptive automation logic.
• Released an API to retrieve browser session IDs associated with a specific invocation.
• Added SSH access to Kernel browsers for debugging, running commands, and tunneling your local development server to the browser.
• Enabled support for the 1280x800 viewport size, which improves click coordinate accuracy.
• The Live View clipboard now syncs correctly between browser and local machine.
• Chrome address autofill prompts are now automatically disabled.

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Documentation updates

• Added a pricing calculator to help you estimate costs based on your plan, session length, and browser type.
• Clarified file access limitations and browser session deletion behavior.

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Product updates

• We changed the default search engine for Kernel browsers to DuckDuckGo, which reduces CAPTCHA friction during web searches.
• We updated the Gemini Computer Use Python and TypeScript templates to use Kernel’s Computer Controls API.
• We released skills for Kernel, so you can easily build browser agents directly from Claude Code.

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Documentation updates

• We published a Scaling in Production guide with recommendations and best practices for handling high-concurrency workloads. Read it to learn how and when to use browser pools versus on-demand browsers, and see code samples for production implementations.
• Added a new integration guide for Agent Browser, Vercel’s headless browser automation CLI, which has built-in support for Kernel browsers.

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Product updates

• Browser pools are now generally available for our Startup and Enterprise plans! Make your startup times even faster with a fleet of instant browsers that come pre-loaded with the logins, cookies, and extensions your agents depend on.
• We improved the Browsers page user experience. Enjoy instant clickability of browser cards, shift+click range selection, preserved view state when switching between grid and list views, a live toggle for auto-refresh, keyboard shortcut support (Cmd+B / Ctrl+B to toggle sidebar), and more.
• We added support for viewing replays of deleted browser sessions. Deleted browsers now navigate to their detail page, which shows the replay player with multiple replays displayed as tabs. The API now supports fetching deleted browser details using new query parameters.
• Overhauled our Anthropic Computer Use template to use Kernel’s Computer Controls API instead of Playwright, improving reliability and performance.
• We improved the live view experience to show a clear “disconnected” screen when a browser is destroyed, instead of leaving users on a blank page.

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Product updates

• Added a Past Sessions view to the dashboard showing your 100 most recent browser sessions; provided context about the session history limit.
• Improved browser session stability to reduce premature disconnections and WebSocket failures.

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Documentation updates

• Updated Playwright examples on the File I/O page with a more streamlined approach for uploads and downloads.

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Product updates

• Introduced a new Hobbyist plan, which provides affordable access to features like session replays, uploading and downloading files, and using custom Chrome extensions.
• Updated the Gemini Computer Use template to use Stagehand V3, resolving compatibility issues.
• Added support for Actor and Thinker OpenAGI models, with guidance on when to use each approach.
• Added new Claude Agent SDK templates for TypeScript and Python that demonstrate browser automation using Kernel’s Playwright execution API.

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Documentation updates

• Added documentation for the OpenAGI Lux integration using the kernel create method, including examples for both AsyncDefaultAgent and TaskerAgent.
• Improved file I/O documentation with code examples for uploading and downloading files from remote browsers.

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Product updates

• Added a new kernel mcp install command to the Kernel CLI that automatically configures the Kernel MCP server for AI development tools like Cursor, Claude, and Visual Studio Code.
• Added a new Python template to the Kernel CLI for OpenAGI’s Lux computer use model, supporting both AsyncDefaultAgent and TaskerAgent with Kernel browser session management.
• Improved CLI performance when looking up browsers by using a direct API call instead of fetching the full list of browsers.
• Fixed bug where headless browsers started with no pages. Headless browsers now initialize with an initial page.
• Fixed bug where replay start and end times were not being returned by the API.

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Product updates

• Refreshed our Vercel template with an enhanced UI and AI agent example
• Deprecated the “persistent” feature from browsers in favor of using extended timeout_seconds with Profiles; added name field to browsers for easier identification
• Unified browser creation tools by porting Create Kernel App functionality into the Kernel CLI
• Improved replay videos to include full video length metadata, enabling timestamp navigation and deep linking

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Documentation updates

• Added OpenAGI integration guide to the Computer Use integrations section

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Product updates

• Added option to include ephemeral and deleted browsers when listing sessions via API
• Updated the maximum timeout available from 24 hours to 72 hours of no CDP activity
• Updated the maximum async invocation duration from 15 minutes to 1 hour
• Improved error messaging when invalid invocation IDs are provided

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Documentation updates

• Stagehand v3: Added code example for using Stagehand v3 with Kernel browsers
• Vercel AI SDK integration: Expanded Vercel integration documentation for the @onkernel/ai-sdk package
• Live view: Added code example showing how to embed browser live views in an iFrame
• CAPTCHA handling in stealth mode: Added documentation on CAPTCHA handling behavior with Cloudflare challenges