OpenAI is bringing its AI agent technology to a broader audience with dots, an assistant designed to work in the background and offer help without waiting for a prompt. The company introduced the product in September, building on capabilities developed for its coding tools.
Available in the ChatGPT desktop and mobile apps for Pro subscribers and above, dots can connect with a user's calendar, email, computer and other tools. It aims to spot upcoming tasks, flag schedule conflicts and suggest useful next steps. Subscriptions start at $100 per month.
From coding tool to personal assistant
OpenAI enterprise product lead Alexander Embiricos says the goal is to make agent technology feel like a single, intuitive assistant rather than a collection of separate conversations. Dots can also conduct periodic research into how it might help, drawing on information and resources users have made available.
The assistant has ChatGPT's privacy controls, including an option to prevent conversations from being used to train models and settings for managing access to resources. OpenAI says it plans to develop more detailed controls as the product evolves.
Dots reflects a broader shift toward AI that can take initiative and coordinate everyday digital tasks. As these assistants improve, clear permissions and reliable integration with the services people use will help determine how naturally they fit into daily life.
