Playwright is an end-to-end testing framework designed for web applications, supporting cross-browser testing via a unified API for Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit. It includes a built-in test runner that facilitates setup and teardown logic through hooks such as `test.beforeAll`, `test.beforeEach`, `test.afterEach`, and `test.afterAll`, which manage test states and side effects. These hooks streamline the testing process by ensuring tests run smoothly with proper initialization and cleanup. Additionally, Playwright can be integrated with CI/CD platforms like CircleCI to automate test execution, enhancing efficiency and consistency in deployment pipelines. The framework also offers flexibility through custom fixtures that extend its functionality, such as navigation automation and state management, further optimizing the test development process.