If you already use GPT or Claude while doing frontend work, you know the annoying part is usually not the code. It is the loop: browser tab for docs, chat window for context, editor for the fix, then back to Can I Use for one more support check. AI tools are starting to steal not just coding work, but the tiny chunks of time you lose switching contexts.
That is why simonw/browser-compat-db matters more than it first sounds. If you treat it like just another compatibility export, you miss the shift and keep doing manual lookups anyway. Browser compatibility is not a web table. It is data that should be interrogated with SQL, meaning you ask the data a question instead of scrolling a page. Most people think they need a stronger model. What they actually need is fewer window switches.
The proof is in what the project ships. In the 2026-06-24 README snapshot, simonw/browser-compat-db turns MDN support data into a SQLite database with 19,834 features and 260,715 support rows, split into tables like features, support, feature_tags, and browser_releases [S001]. That is the moment the workflow changes: you stop asking only whether a single feature works and start asking broader questions without scanning table after table.
The same README snapshot also notes direct browser-based querying through Datasette Lite [S001]. So the useful part is not just that someone exported MDN. The useful part is that the data is no longer trapped in a page you scroll. You can query it, filter it, and reuse the answer instead of repeating the same lookup in every tab, chat, or review.
Boundary check: this is not a claim that everyone should build their own compatibility database. If you only need a quick yes-or-no answer, a normal web table is still fine. But if browser support checks keep turning into tab hopping and copy-pasting, save this and share it with the person who still treats compatibility like something you eyeball one row at a time.