Kagi Abandons Orion Browser for Linux and Windows, Open-Sources Both
An Update on Orion for Linux and Windows
Kagi is ending development of Orion for Linux and Windows and open-sourcing both projects so the community can continue them. The small, user-funded team will focus on Orion for macOS and iOS. The Linux beta stops receiving updates on October 2, 2026, and the planned Windows release won't come from Kagi. The company is seeking maintainers and open-source foundations for long-term stewardship.
We also chose to build it the hard way by not forking Chromium. That independence matters more than ever. The web needs more than one engine, and more than one company deciding what a browser should be.
- RandomGerm4n
I've never understood what niche Orion is supposed to fill. People who value privacy would be more likely to use an open-source browser. Firefox and Brave already serve that purpose. Maybe it's less important to Mac users, but on Linux, a proprietary browser is a major deal-breaker for most people. Plus, it's less convenient if the browser isn't simply included in the repository as a result. Orion should have been developed as open source from the start, with community involvement. Kagi can still benefit from this, though, by serving as the default search engine in exchange for funding the development, and by having the Kagi Assistant directly integrated into the platform.
- petepete
So as a non-Apple-using Kagi subscriber since Beta, I kind of wish they'd just concentrate on search - the thing I'm paying for.
Yes, it's good, and I'll keep using it for the foreseeable future, but it's not an unassailable lead.
- ToyKeeper
I would like my extensions to support every browser possible, but if a browser only runs on Mac, I won't be able to test my stuff in it. I've had users asking me for Orion support for ages, and I keep telling them I'll add it once I can run it... but now it looks like that's not going to happen.
Dropping the ports doesn't necessarily make the Mac version better. It makes the entire browser unsupportable by developers who want to make their sites/programs/extensions work in Orion but can't run it.
So my support list now is...
- Supported: Firefox, Chrome, Edge, Floorp, Chromium, Brave, Vivaldi, Librewolf, Waterfox, Ungoogled Chromium, Thorium, Mullvad, Tor, DuckDuckGo, Yandex, ...
- Impractical to support: Orion
- Impossible to support: Zen Browser
- ClaraForm
Lately I haven't been very happy with Kagi. A few searches have completely failed for me returning a blank page when both DuckDuckGo and Google had a response. The Kagi translate on/off switch made me think their services are unreliable. Then this happens and it feels like more that their word is unreliable. They expanded into too many domains and spread themselves too thin and that doesn't give me confidence.
My subscription is up for renewal in December and I think I actually have a decision to make. For now I'm very happy with the Kagi MCP for my research agent. But I'm definitely having a moment of "how reliant should I really be on this company?"
- sylens
I really tried to make Orion work for me on iOS but I was running into so many issues browsing websites. Performance issues, issues with certain interactive controls. Switched back to Safari and it was like night and day. Feel like it needs a lot of polish so on one hand I think this is a good move to help them focus. However, I feel like it is very much possible that in a year we will hear them shuttering Orion completely to refocus on search.
- InsideOutSanta
I wish they would cancel the Mac version as well. It really has no clear purpose and just further dilutes the "alternatives to Chrome" space. If they have money to spend on a browser, why not put that effort into a browser that actually has a chance to tilt the scales a bit, like Zen?
- radicalriddler
I’ve been a long-time subscriber to kagi, but also a long-time critic that they bite off more than they can chew. Relatively happy to see this, and I’m sure there’ll be an open-source community willing to carry on the Linux work.
- mxuribe
I'm not a kagi subscriber (yet), but am more and more becoming a fan of them and their approaches. I count myself as one of the folks who was thrilled about this web browser, because as much as i love firefox, we need diversity. Ok, ok, not too too much fragmentation...but still we need offerings to help people. So, while i was hopeful for kagi folks to keep working on orion i'm happy that at least they'll open source it and have a community continue it forward. My future hope now is that community members indeed take this browser and grow it further.