OpenAI introduces ChatGPT Work and new GPT 5.6 models

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OpenAI has introduced ChatGPT Work, an AI agent that autonomously performs tasks across multiple apps and devices – and has also released the new GPT-5.6 model generation. For Mac users, a new desktop app that combines ChatGPT and the Codex developer tool is particularly relevant.

OpenAI has announced several new features at once: ChatGPT Work, an agent-based extension that independently handles multi-stage tasks, and the GPT-5.6 model series, which is now being widely rolled out after a closed preview phase. Because ChatGPT is already tightly integrated into Apple Intelligence and can be set up on the iPhone, the new model generation indirectly affects many Apple users. Additionally, a new ChatGPT desktop app for Mac is being released.

ChatGPT Work: an agent for everyday work

The centerpiece of the announcement is ChatGPT Work – an agent with an integrated codec that executes tasks across web, mobile devices, and desktops, accessing information from connected apps. The agent can handle multi-stage tasks and autonomously manage processes, even in the background, using a scheduling function. It utilizes local files and programs or a new built-in browser to access websites and online tools. Additional apps can be connected via plug-ins, and a new Sites beta allows for the creation of interactive pages and dashboards.

ChatGPT Work is initially available for the Pro, Enterprise, and Edu plans and will be extended to the Plus and Business plans in the coming days. With this move, OpenAI is entering the competition for agentic AI assistants, a field in which providers like Anthropic and Google are also active with similar tools.

GPT-5.6: three models for different requirements

ChatGPT Work is powered by the new GPT-5.6 model series, which consists of three variants. Sol is the new top-of-the-line model, which, according to OpenAI, achieves top performance in areas such as programming, knowledge work, cybersecurity, and science, while requiring less computational effort than previous top models. Terra is positioned as a well-balanced, everyday model, and Luna as a particularly cost-efficient variant.

Regarding the distribution across the plans: GPT-5.6 Sol is available to Plus, Pro, Business, and Enterprise users, while free Free and Go users receive Terra. Overall, GPT-5.6 is now available in ChatGPT, Codex, and via the OpenAI API. OpenAI is also promoting this new flagship model as its most powerful yet for cybersecurity tasks such as code inspection and threat analysis, and highlights its tiered safeguards against misuse.

New Mac app and the Codex migration

For Apple users, one structural change is particularly interesting: OpenAI is merging the previously separate Codex and ChatGPT applications into a new ChatGPT desktop app, available for both Mac and Windows. Users who already have the Codex app installed can update it to the new ChatGPT desktop app. The existing ChatGPT desktop app will be renamed "ChatGPT Classic" and will remain available.

In practice, this means that Mac users will soon have an app that combines classic chat functionality with agentic Codex features under one roof. Similar to comparable tools, ChatGPT can run in the background across apps and handle tasks on the computer.

Why model choice matters beyond the app

The model generation behind ChatGPT is relevant for Apple users not only in the standalone app. ChatGPT can be directly connected to Siri via Apple Intelligence and integrated into the system's typing functions – those who use this integration ultimately access OpenAI's models. While Apple doesn't specify which GPT version it offers in its integration, each new generation on the OpenAI side influences the performance of the responses available via Siri.

The pace in the AI race is accelerating

With ChatGPT Work and GPT-5.6, OpenAI is shifting its focus further away from a simple question-and-answer chatbot towards a system that can independently perform tasks. This development is doubly significant for Apple: as a direct provider of a Mac app and as a partner whose models are part of everyday iPhone use through Apple's Intelligence integration. How quickly Apple adapts its own AI strategy to this pace is likely to remain one of the key questions in the coming months. (Image: Shutterstock / arda savasciogullari)