ChatGPT Desktop App Adds Computer Use: One App for Chat, Work & Codex

Key Takeaways

• The new ChatGPT desktop app (Mac/Windows) merges Chat, a new Work agent, and Codex into one place; the previous app becomes "ChatGPT classic." It's free to try, not locked behind a paid plan.
• Computer Use can click, type, move files, and complete multi-step tasks in the background while you keep working — as a one-time action or a scheduled task that repeats on a timer or trigger. You don't have to watch it.
• A built-in browser (Cmd+Shift+B on Mac, Ctrl+Shift+B on Windows) lets ChatGPT see the page you're on, work across tabs, sign into sites, and download files. An annotation mode lets you point at a specific spot and ask for a change.
• Permission system by design: ChatGPT asks before touching any new website, tells you to treat page content as untrusted, and prompts you to confirm which account is active — so a wrong page or account is something you can stop.
• Roles are split: Work is built for non-coders (research → documents, spreadsheets, presentations, reports); Codex keeps computer-use for developers (PR review, inline edits in diffs, multi-repo projects). The update is powered by GPT-5.6, which ships in three variants — Sol, Terra, and Luna.
• An updated Chrome extension lets ChatGPT work in your real signed-in Chrome sessions and tabs; the separate Atlas browser is being wound down (target ~August 9), folded into the built-in browser. A new Sites feature turns outputs into shareable live web apps that stay current.

Commands & Shortcuts Mentioned

Cmd + Shift + B   # Mac — open the built-in browser
Ctrl + Shift + B  # Windows — open the built-in browser