New Pack: kai-browser-skill v1.1.0 - Best of Both Worlds Browser Automation

[danielmiessler]

The Problem with Browser Automation Today

AI agents need browser automation for verification, screenshots, form filling, and testing. The standard approach is Playwright MCP:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "playwright": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@playwright/mcp@latest"]
    }
  }
}

The cost: ~13,700 tokens loaded at startup, whether you use it or not.

The Solution: File-Based MCP

Inspired by Anthropic's engineering blog post on code execution with MCP, the kai-browser-skill takes a different approach:

Code-first execution - Pre-written scripts that execute existing code, not generate new code.

# One command, zero boilerplate
bun run $PAI_DIR/skills/Browser/Tools/Browse.ts screenshot https://example.com /tmp/shot.png

Best of Both Worlds

Feature	Playwright MCP	kai-browser-skill
Startup cost	~13,700 tokens	0 tokens
Full Playwright API	21 tools only	Complete API
CLI interface	No	screenshot/verify/open
Token per operation	~0	~50-200

Result: 99%+ token savings while retaining full Playwright functionality.

What's in v1.1.0

• CLI-first documentation - The right pattern is now unmissable
• Anti-pattern warnings - "STOP" section shows what NOT to do
• Decision tree - Visual routing for CLI vs TypeScript
• VERIFY phase integration - Browser verification for web changes

Get the Pack

kai-browser-skill.md

The pack includes:

• PlaywrightBrowser API wrapper
• CLI tool (screenshot, verify, open)
• 4 pre-built workflows
• Example scripts

---

Would love to hear if anyone else has explored file-based MCPs for browser automation. What's your experience with MCP token overhead?

[justbry]

MCP token overhead has gotten crazy. I love Claude Skills.

Just started using this: https://github.com/lackeyjb/playwright-skill

It uses /tmp dir pretty well to isolate the temp files.

[danielmiessler]

Update: pai-browser-skill is now at v1.2.0 in PAI v2.1.0! 🎉

This version includes all the best-of-both-worlds improvements plus additional enhancements.

Closing this announcement as superseded by the v2.1.0 release.

See: https://github.com/danielmiessler/PAI/releases/tag/v2.1.0