# In-app browser renders pages but agent control times out

Report status: Prepared locally. Not submitted.

Environment

• Date: 2026-09-17
• Running application: ChatGPT desktop, Codex task experience
• Operating system: macOS 26.5.2, build 25F84
• Application version: 26.903.61454, build 8378
• Browser: built-in browser (IAB)
• User reports that the same Supabase workflow previously worked.

Problem and impact

The built-in browser loads and displays webpages, but the agent cannot reliably acquire the tab, read its rendered state, or control it. This blocks an established Supabase data workflow. The failure also reproduces on the public OpenAI Developers website, so it is not limited to Supabase or an authenticated database page.

Reproduction observed

1. In a fresh Codex task, request a visible in-app browser tab for https://developers.openai.com/.
2. The createBrowserTab call reports: Timed out waiting for tab 1 to navigate to https://developers.openai.com/. after approximately 52 seconds.
3. A subsequent browser inventory nevertheless lists the tab with title OpenAI Developers and the correct URL. The user-visible browser context also reports this URL.
4. Acquiring the existing tab with getTab times out. The final test reported js execution timed out; kernel reset, rerun your request after approximately 73 seconds.
5. Reopening the existing browser panel and navigating back to the task did not restore control in this test.

Related Supabase failures were observed in both the original task and a newly created continuation task. The continuation task could read Supabase through a separate browser, providing counterevidence to a database outage.

Expected result

Once a visible page is loaded, the agent should be able to acquire the tab, inspect its rendered state, and perform authorized interactions.

Relevant sanitized application log evidence

The following entries are from the same running application session on 2026-09-17. Times are UTC. Task IDs and temporary IDs have been replaced with placeholders.

05:53:50.500 browser_use_iab_backend_startup_ready sessionId=<current-task>
05:53:50.536 IAB_LIFECYCLE reassigned browser use route sourceConversationId=<current-task> targetConversationId=client-new-thread:<temporary-id>
05:53:51.485 received browser sidebar owner sync conversationId=client-new-thread:<temporary-id> ownerRoutePath=/local/<current-task>
05:55:53.600 iab backend info request failed: No ChatGPT browser route is available for browser session <current-task>
05:58:20.842 iab createTab mapped page to tab conversationId=<current-task> routeKey=1:client-new-thread:<temporary-id> tabId=1 webContentsId=11
05:58:21.067 iab backend request failed: No target available; request=executeCdp:Emulation.setFocusEmulationEnabled
06:01:06.284 iab backend info request failed: No ChatGPT browser route is available for browser session <current-task>

An earlier Supabase attempt in the same application session also logged:

05:31:33.134 Timed out running CDP command "Emulation.setFocusEmulationEnabled" for tab 5

Assessment and uncertainty

The observations point to an application-side IAB session routing or control attachment failure. The mismatch between the actual task ID and a retained client-new-thread route is a concrete lead for investigation, not a proven underlying code defect. The exact trigger and whether a particular update introduced the regression remain unconfirmed.

Fresh tasks, another website, and reopening the panel did not resolve the failure. A full application restart has not been tested during this investigation. No browser data was cleared, no permissions were broadened, and no database changes were made for this diagnosis.

Requested investigation

Please investigate the route mapping and CDP target lifecycle when a temporary client-new-thread conversation becomes a persisted Codex task. Please advise whether there is a known fix, an available application update, or a supported way to reset the browser control session without deleting website login data.

Start by reproducing the failure and tracing createBrowserTab, getTab, and executeCdp through the route mapping and CDP target lifecycle. Use the supplied logs to compare the temporary client-new-thread route with the persisted task route; done means a loaded tab can be acquired, inspected, and controlled reliably.