surfari 0.1.10

Surfari: Modular browser automation with LLM

Surfari

Surfari is a modular, LLM-powered browser automation framework built on Playwright.
It enables secure, scriptable, and intelligent interactions with websites — perfect for data extraction, automated workflows, and AI-assisted navigation.

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✨ Key Features

• Automatic Record, Parameterize & Replay
  Surfari automatically records both the exact sequence of LLM actions and a generalized, parameterized workflow at the same time.
  When running new tasks, Surfari plugs in the new values, replays the known workflow, and invokes the LLM only for review or recovery.
  🔑 Unique: Replays are fast and stable, while parameterization makes them flexible and reusable for new but structurally similar tasks.

• Self-Healing Replay
  If the recorded path fails due to layout drift, Surfari seamlessly switches to real-time LLM reasoning for that step, then resumes deterministic replay — combining stability with resilience.

• Agent Delegation & Collaboration
  A Navigation Agent can pause its own run and delegate subtasks to another agent in a separate tab, then resume after the subtask completes.
  Enables branching workflows, multi-agent collaboration, and parallel subtasks — like a team of agents cooperating inside one browser.

• Human-in-the-Loop Delegation
  When needed, Surfari can gracefully delegate control back to a human operator.
  You complete the missing step in the live browser, then the agent continues the workflow automatically.

• Stable, Text-Based UI Targets
  Instead of brittle XPaths or random IDs, Surfari uses semantic text annotations as selectors.
  Enables highly stable record/replay with stable, meaningful UI targets.

• Visual Decisioning (Action Box Overlay)
  Surfari can show the LLM’s reasoning and intended action in an on-page action box overlay next to the targeted element — making the agent’s decisions transparent, reviewable, and debuggable.

• Configurable LLM Models (No Coding Required)
  Swap models like Google Gemini, OpenAI GPT, Anthropic Claude, just by name in config — no code changes needed.

• Information Masking
  Automatically masks and unmasks account numbers, balances, and any digit-like strings, ensuring sensitive data remains protected during logs, prompts, and replays.

• One or Multiple Actions Per Turn
  Choose between step-by-step interactivity (safer on dynamic sites) or multi-action per turn (faster on static or more predictable sites/workflows).

• Custom Value Resolvers (Beyond Tool Calling)
  Unknown form values (inputs, select options, etc.) can be resolved automatically via direct APIs, retrieval-augmented search, or custom resolvers — without requiring tool calls through the LLM.

• Tool Calling Integration

  • Python Tools: Easy integration via function calling.
  • MCP Tools: Stdio or HTTP servers supported for external integrations.

• Screenshots for Grounding
  Use screenshots as additional context for the LLM to ensure accurate reasoning (a tad slower) Supports saving screenshots for later review.

• PDF Download Automation
  Downloads PDFs from both direct download links and embedded Chrome PDF viewers.

• Batch Execution from CSV
  Run or schedule multiple tasks in one batch — each task can target a different site, goal, or credential set, with its own settings (e.g., single vs. multi-action per turn, record/replay on/off, masking enabled/disabled, screenshots enabled/disabled).

• OTP Handling
  Automatically solves text-message OTPs by setting up SMS forwarding from your phone to your Gmail, then auto-filling them during login.

• Google Tools Integration
  Out-of-the-box support for Gmail, Google Sheets, and Google Docs.

• Deployment Options

  • CLI Binaries: Platform-specific executables — no Python setup required. Just download and run.
  • Docker Deployment: Cloud mode with VNC-based browser streaming. Provision a VM and access the remote browser directly from your web browser.

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🚀 Quick Start

Surfari can be used in two ways:

1. Directly via the prebuilt CLI (no Python setup needed)
2. From Python code (full flexibility in your own scripts)

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Option 1: Run the CLI

1. Download the prebuilt CLI zip for your platform (Linux, Windows, macOS) from the Surfari Releases page.
2. Unzip the archive.
3. Open a terminal / command prompt and change into the navigation_cli folder.
4. Set your API key environment variable (example: Gemini):

   export GEMINI_API_KEY=your_api_key_here   # macOS / Linux
   set GEMINI_API_KEY=your_api_key_here      # Windows CMD
   

   Other supported keys:

   • OPENAI_API_KEY for OpenAI GPT models
   • ANTHROPIC_API_KEY for Anthropic Claude models

5. Check the CLI help:

   ./navigation_cli --help        # macOS / Linux
   navigation_cli.exe --help      # Windows
   

6. Adjust configuration (optional):
   • Edit _internal/surfari/util/config.json, or
   • Pass overrides with command-line arguments.

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Option 2: Run from Python

1. Install Surfari:

   pip install surfari
   # optionally install chromium. If chromium is not installed, system Chrome browser will be used.
   python -m playwright install chromium
   

2. Set your API key as above (GEMINI_API_KEY, OPENAI_API_KEY, or ANTHROPIC_API_KEY).
   You can also put it in a .env file and load it with dotenv.

3. Write a script (example below uses Expedia):

   import asyncio
   from dotenv import load_dotenv
   load_dotenv()  # load .env file if present
   
   from surfari.agents.navigation_agent import NavigationAgent
   
   async def main():
       site_name = "Expedia"
       task_goal = "Find cheapest direct flight ticket from SFO to New York leaving on first week of Nov 2025, returning 10 days later"
   
       nav_agent = NavigationAgent(site_name=site_name)
       answer = await nav_agent.run(task_goal=task_goal)
   
       print("Final answer:", answer)
   
   asyncio.run(main())
   

4. Run your script:

   python my_script.py
   

5. Switch models (optional):

   nav_agent = NavigationAgent(site_name="Expedia", model="gpt-5-mini")  # uses OPENAI_API_KEY
   

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🔐 Credential Storage

• Linux: Key stored in ~/.surfari/key_string with permissions rw------- (chmod 600).
• macOS: Key stored in ~/.surfari/key_string or system keyring (via keyring library).
• Windows: Key stored in system keyring (via keyring library).
• Database: Encrypted SQLite in your Surfari environment.

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🛠 Development

git clone https://github.com/surfari-ai/surfari.git
cd surfari
pip install -e .[dev]
python -m playwright install chromium

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📂 Project Structure

src/surfari/
  ├── __init__.py
  ├── util/config.json
  ├── security/site_credential_manager.py
  ├── agents/
  │    └── navigation_agent/
  ├── view/html_to_text.js
  └── security/credentials.db

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🤝 Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/new-thing)
3. Commit changes (git commit -m "Add new thing")
4. Push to branch (git push origin feature/new-thing)
5. Open a Pull Request

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📜 License

MIT License — see LICENSE for details.