Browser Vendors Ask Developers: What Should We Fix Next?

Microsoft Edge, together with Google, Mozilla, Samsung Internet, Igalia and the wider web community, has launched The Web We Want, an open initiative that asks designers and developers to tell browser vendors directly what to build or fix on the web platform. The central question: if you change anything the platform with magic wand, what would it be?

The goal is to surface the everyday frustrations and missing capabilities builders run into — the hacks, workarounds and “I shouldn’t have to build this myself” moments. That feedback is meant to guide where browsers and standards bodies invest engineering resources next.

Submissions so far range across accessibility, developer tooling and core platform features. Examples include:

  • Automatically fix accessibility problems that have known solutions
  • Better native HTML form controls
  • Ability to save and reload debugger state
  • Performant CSS transitions for width and height
  • Accessibility tooling treated as a first-class platform concern

Why Submit?

Every submission helps vendors decide if an idea is something a browser can tackle directly or whether it needs broader scoping for Web Standards discussions. The initiative is also an opportunity to step back and assess where the platform’s real gaps are today — what makes building for the web harder than it should be.

Ways to Participate

The simplest way to join is to submit your own “want” at webwewant.fyi. Browser vendor representatives monitor submissions, so even a short request gets eyes on it.

There is also a conference-track component with live, community-facing sessions. Submissions can be picked for 3-5 minute lightning pitches delivered to a panel of judges, effectively a “Shark Tank for web platform ideas.” The judging panels have included Rachel Andrew, Jen Simmons, Miriam Suzanne and Marcy Sutton.

In-person attendance is not required. If a selected submission comes from someone not at the event, they can pre-record their pitch and it will be shown during the live session. Following the pitches, judges deliberate and pick the most compelling “want,” with community voting open to anyone on the website and through social media. Audiences at the events can also rank the pitches live.

Sessions have already run at An Event Apart DC, Smashing Conf, and View Source. Event and meetup organizers who want to host such a session can get in touch with Stephanie Stimac or Aaron Gustafson.

The larger point of this effort, say organizers, is that browser vendors want direction on which features matter now — from the people actually doing the building. Developers can share their priorities at webwewant.fyi.