OpenAI introduces Dots, a background agentic assistant

At the DevDay event on Tuesday, OpenAI announced the launch of Dots, a new personal agentic assistant powered by GPT-6 Astra. Described as remarkably capable and always-on, the system is built to handle complex tasks with minimal ongoing oversight.

Unlike traditional interfaces, Dots are designed to operate independently across various workflows, pursuing user-defined goals continuously in the background. Users can initialize a primary assistant, assign it a name, and gradually build teams of digital agents to collaborate on shared objectives.

Availability and Integration

Dots are available starting Tuesday in ChatGPT for Pro and Business Premium users in eligible markets. Users can launch the system directly from Codex or ChatGPT, and communicate with their agents through organizational platforms such as Slack and Microsoft Teams, with standard text message support scheduled to arrive soon.

Practical Applications

OpenAI highlighted several use cases for the new software across different professional domains.

• Software development: Deploying a dedicated agent to monitor customer feedback and implement bug fixes.
• Scientific research: Automatically rerunning analyses and investigating unexpected results as new experimental data becomes available.

Organizations can also provision specialist assistants with specific identities, credentials, and specialized tools. OpenAI is currently working alongside Microsoft to integrate these agents into existing enterprise security controls like Agent 365.