OpenAI Dots Take on Meta Muse and Grok Bot With 24/7 AI Agents

OpenAI has launched Dots, always-on personal AI agents powered by GPT-6 Astra, designed to keep working for you in the background. The company announced Dots at its Dev Day event, which is happening right now.

Each dot gets its own cloud computer, learns from your feedback over time, and can work toward your goals 24/7, according to OpenAI. Instead of opening a chat and typing instructions every time, you hand the dot ongoing responsibilities and it keeps working even while you do something else.

Through plugins, dots connect to more than 4,000 apps. You can reach your dot through ChatGPT on desktop, web and mobile, as well as Slack and Microsoft Teams, with texting support coming soon. Voice calls are supported too, although we’ll update on what’s available for Canadians.

When your dot has nothing assigned, it can still look for ways to help. OpenAI calls this proactive research: the dot uses read-only tools to gather information while idle, but it cannot send messages or change the content of your apps.

The avatars are part of the pitch, as OpenAI shows dots as bubbly blob characters. The rounded blobs look similar to the avatars SpaceXAI uses for its Grok Bot AI teammates.

The launch puts OpenAI in the same always-on personal-agent race as Meta. Meta launched its own personal AI agent, Muse, earlier this month, and it is now available in Canada, which lets you get started for free.

Dots are rolling out today to ChatGPT Pro ($136 CAD/month) and Business Premium users in eligible markets. Enterprise users can try the beta once their workspace administrator enables it. The first dot is included at no extra cost, and conversations with a dot do not count toward ChatGPT usage limits.

OpenAI is also building specialist dots for organizations, which take on defined responsibilities with their own identity and credentials. The company says it is working with Microsoft to integrate these agents with Agent 365 governance controls.