Orion Browser by Kagi

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Orion, a WebKit-based browser from search startup Kagi, is drawing interest for its zero-telemetry stance, built-in ad and tracking blockers, and unusually broad support for Chrome and Firefox extensions — including on iOS, where such capabilities are rare. Users report strong performance and good privacy defaults, but also frequent bugs, memory leaks, and compatibility issues that make it feel like an alpha product, especially on mobile. Many see potential in a paid, user-aligned browser that isn’t funded by ads, while others question whether Kagi’s small team is spreading itself too thin by building a browser alongside its subscription search engine.

Overall Sentiment

  • Many are enthusiastic, especially existing Kagi Search users; several report Orion as their daily driver on macOS and/or iOS.
  • Others find it too buggy to rely on: crashes, hangs, and rough edges make some revert to Firefox/Safari/Arc.
  • General consensus: promising, especially on iOS, but still feels like beta/early-stage.

Performance, Stability, and UX

  • Mac: Some report it as “Safari with better blocking,” generally fast and light on battery; others hit serious bugs (browser hangs, kernel panics suspected but later clarified as app crashes).
  • iOS/iPadOS: More reports of bugs and “jank,” including unresponsive pages (e.g., Reddit), slow or failing loads, and extensions randomly not working or signing out.
  • Several note specific lag/memory issues on dynamic sites (YouTube controls after hours, GitHub views, ChatGPT), sometimes worse than Safari, sometimes similar.

Extensions and Ad Blocking

  • Major selling point: WebKit-based browser that supports Chrome and Firefox-style web extensions, including on iOS/iPadOS. Users call this unique and transformative for mobile (e.g., uBlock Origin, Bypass Paywalls).
  • Some extensions partially broken (YNAB Toolkit, Bitwarden/1Password autofill behaviors).
  • Built-in content blocker plus uBlock can interfere; guidance suggests disabling Orion’s blocker if chasing “last 10%.”
  • Users report mixed ad-block test scores; some achieve 99–100% with Orion+uBO(+DNS), others see worse results than in other browsers.

Privacy, Telemetry, and Security

  • Zero telemetry by default is repeatedly emphasized and framed as core to respecting privacy.
  • Strong debate: some argue limited, aggregated, opt-in telemetry is essential for improving performance and isn’t inherently privacy-violating; others say any default telemetry (due to IP and metadata) breaks privacy.
  • One commenter doubts security of a small browser team vs large vendors; others counter that large vendors are ad-driven and misaligned with user interests.

Platform and Ecosystem Support

  • Currently macOS, iOS, iPadOS only; a Linux build is in early work; no timelines for Windows/Android.
  • Lack of cross‑platform sync is a deal-breaker for multi‑OS users.
  • Different macOS builds exist to ship OS-optimized WebKit.

Business Strategy and Pricing

  • Some Kagi Search subscribers feel browser (and talk of future email/maps) dilutes focus; they’d prefer all effort on search.
  • Kagi’s response in-thread: browser is needed to “humanize the web,” provide a user-paid, ad-free, zero-telemetry alternative, and acts as a customer acquisition channel for search.
  • Search pricing ($5/month) is debated; some want $1–2, others argue low-price users aren’t worth the support cost.

Open Source and Community

  • Orion is not fully open source yet; some users plan to wait until it is, and some would contribute (e.g., bookmarks/history).
  • Stated reasons for delay: security review and separating proprietary/business-specific pieces before opening the code.