This startup provides a cloud platform for running and managing headless browsers at scale, enabling developers to build and deploy AI agents and automate web interactions. Their service offers a reliable and scalable infrastructure for web scraping, testing, and other browser-based automation tasks.
Funding
Funding not disclosed
Founders
Product
Problem
Building AI agents and web automation tools requires managing complex browser infrastructure, including handling dynamic content, authentication, and anti-bot measures. Scaling and maintaining headless browser fleets can be resource-intensive, diverting focus from core AI application development. Many websites lack APIs, forcing developers to rely on brittle, custom scrapers.
Solution
Steel provides an open-source browser API that simplifies the creation and management of cloud-based browser sessions for AI agents and web automation. The platform offers a managed infrastructure that handles browser scaling, credential management, proxy rotation, and CAPTCHA solving. Developers can use the API or Python/Node SDKs to control browser sessions, extract data, and automate web interactions. Steel supports JavaScript execution for rendering dynamic content and offers features like persistent cookies and automatic sign-in for accessing data behind logins.
Target Audience
The primary users are AI engineers and developers building AI agents, web scrapers, RPA software, and other browser automation tools.
Features
- API and SDKs for managing fleets of browser sessions in the cloud
- Support for Puppeteer, Playwright, and Selenium automation frameworks
- Session management with persistent cookies and local storage
- Built-in proxy support with IP rotation and anti-detection measures
- Automatic CAPTCHA solving
- JavaScript execution for rendering dynamic content
- Tools for extracting data as HTML, markdown, PDFs, or screenshots
- Live session viewers and replays for debugging
- Credentials API for secure authentication with websites
- Files API for uploading, managing, and downloading files within browser sessions