OpenAI Launches Dots, Work Agents That Can Order Dinner and Challenge App Stores
OpenAI's new Dots agents can work in apps and place orders, and new ChatGPT features aim to make the chatbot a place to find and use software.
OpenAI has introduced Dots, a new agent platform that can work inside software on a virtual computer and, in some cases, buy things for you. Alongside it, the company announced features that TechCrunch says amount to a direct challenge to the traditional app store model.
What Dots are
Dots are agents with blobby, cartoon-like avatars and names you choose. According to The Verge, you get one Dot for now, and OpenAI says multiple Dots will come later.
You chat with a Dot in one window and watch it click around a virtual machine in another. That machine can use apps such as Blender and GIMP from the start. You can also give a Dot access to your own computer through the desktop ChatGPT app, or call it to talk through a task out loud.
The Verge's reviewer says Dots feel more like coworkers than personal shoppers: business software that can use other software.
How it performed in testing
The Verge tested Dots on everyday errands, with mixed results. A Dot nearly booked an internet installation appointment and even found a $100 promotion in the reviewer's email. It stalled at a "press and hold" human check and needed the user to complete it.
At checkout it asked for bank account details. The reviewer says there was no payment integration like the one Meta's Muse has, so they finished the purchase themselves.
In another test, the Dot missed a free-tour option at a coworking space and offered a $35 day pass. A rival agent, Instinct, found the free option. Muse and Instinct are currently free, while Dots are limited to OpenAI's highest-tier accounts.
The app store angle
TechCrunch says the Dev Day announcements together turn ChatGPT into a place where software can be found, launched and used by people and agents.
- App suggestions: ChatGPT will recommend an app within a conversation when it seems useful, and users can connect it on the spot.
- Extensions: An expanded plug-in system lets developers build interactive panels that run inside ChatGPT.
- Sign in with ChatGPT: Users can bring their ChatGPT identity and existing AI allowance to third-party apps. OpenAI lists 16 launch partners, including Notion, Vercel and Cognition's Devin.
- Enterprise marketplace: More than 30 partners, including Adobe, Figma, HubSpot, Salesforce and ServiceNow, are listed at launch. Eligible customers can apply part of their OpenAI commitment toward approved partner software.
Developers also get a better review process. They can track a submission, see what needs fixing, request a human review and update tools without resubmitting everything.
In a demo, OpenAI showed a meeting app inside ChatGPT that listed calendar events, took notes and summarized follow-ups. Apps can be shared through lightweight ChatGPT-built websites, where colleagues sign in with their own credentials.
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What it means for you
If you pay for a top-tier ChatGPT plan, Dots may be worth trying for work tasks. The hands-on test suggests you should expect to step in for human checks and payment details, and to double-check its choices. Everyone else may soon notice ChatGPT suggesting apps and offering a "Sign in with ChatGPT" option. OpenAI has not detailed a wider Dots rollout in the material available, so watch for further announcements.
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