OpenAI launches dots: always-on AI agents powered by GPT-6 Astra
- Dots are always-on AI agents that keep working toward your goals in the background.
- They run on GPT-6 Astra, each with its own cloud computer and browser.
- Rolling out now to ChatGPT Pro and Business Premium in eligible markets; the first dot is included at no extra cost.
- Early hands-on testers report bugs with permissions, dropped messages and browser connections.
OpenAI announced dots on September 29, 2026 at its DevDay event in San Francisco. Unlike ChatGPT, which waits for you to open a chat, a dot is designed to stay on: it learns your goals and preferences, works on several projects at once, and brings finished work back for your review.
What a dot can do
- Work on its own cloud computer with its own browser, around the clock.
- Connect to more than 4,000 apps through ChatGPT plugins.
- Take on long-running projects in parallel instead of one chat thread at a time.
- Hand coding work to Codex and return complete pull requests for review.
- Optionally connect to your laptop, with your permission, to work alongside you.
Example use cases from OpenAI
- Developers: watch customer feedback, scope small fixes, build and test them, and return PRs with videos of the change.
- Product launches: revise positioning and launch materials when scope changes.
- Research: rerun analyses and update figures as new data arrives.
- Sales: update a proposal and test plan as customer requirements shift.
- Content creators: turn a new transcript into clips, show notes and draft social posts for approval.
Where you can reach your dot
You can chat with or call your dot in ChatGPT on desktop, web and mobile, and message it in Slack and Microsoft Teams. Texting is listed as coming soon. Context carries across channels, and the dot can message you with progress, questions or decisions.
Safety and control
- Proactive research: when you are not working with it, a dot looks for ways to help using read-only access to your connected apps.
- Custom Rules let you allow, require approval for, or block specific actions.
- Activity View shows what your dot is doing, including background work.
- Auto-review checks sensitive actions against your instructions and safety rules; some tasks, such as changing a password, always stay with you.
- Saved passwords can be used to sign in without exposing them to the model.
Pricing and availability
| Plans | ChatGPT Pro and Business Premium, in eligible markets |
|---|---|
| Enterprise / Edu / Healthcare | Beta, off by default, enabled by a workspace admin |
| Cost | First dot included at no extra cost |
| Usage | Conversations with your dot do not count toward ChatGPT limits; Codex and ChatGPT Work tasks it starts do |
| More dots | Planned: add more dots and scale speed or monthly workload |
| Setup | Create your dot in the ChatGPT desktop app or a desktop browser; mobile works after setup |
Specialist dots for organizations
OpenAI also previewed specialist dots: agents with their own identity, credentials and system access that take on defined roles inside a company, such as procurement or invoice processing. They start with focused enterprise pilots, and OpenAI is working with Microsoft to manage them through Agent 365.
Early reactions
Coverage framed dots as OpenAI's answer to Meta's Muse. Every's hands-on review said dots quickly became the reviewer's main way of using ChatGPT, but also reported frequent permission issues, dropped messages and trouble connecting to the in-app browser in the tested version.