THE ESSENTIALS IN 30 SECONDS

  • In an email to users, OpenAI said the Chat and Work tabs will become one ChatGPT experience for both conversation and multi-step tasks.
  • The merged version goes to select users for feedback before a wider rollout; no date has been given.
  • Codex remains a separate section of the desktop app, and the shared ChatGPT–Codex usage allowance announced for December still applies.

OpenAI plans to remove the split between the Chat and Work tabs in ChatGPT. According to an email sent to users and reported by TechCrunch and Digital Trends on November 2, the two will become a single ChatGPT experience, so that a conversation can turn into a task without switching views.

What changes

Today the ChatGPT desktop app has separate ChatGPT and Codex sections, and the ChatGPT side is itself divided into Chat and Work. OpenAI's help center describes Chat as the place for quick questions and everyday help, while Work is an agent for longer, multi-step jobs that end in deliverables such as documents, spreadsheets, presentations, reports or websites.

In the merged version, the email says users will be able to explore an idea and then ask ChatGPT to carry it out from the same place, bringing in files and plugins and reviewing the work as it progresses. Examples given include building a website, producing a presentation or taking actions on the web. Codex, OpenAI's coding agent, will stay a distinct experience inside the desktop app.

OpenAI will first offer the combined interface to a limited group of users to collect feedback, then widen access. No date for the broader release has been announced, and the reports do not specify which subscription plans will get it first.

Why OpenAI is doing it

The two-tab layout was a stopgap. When OpenAI combined its ChatGPT and Codex desktop apps and introduced Work earlier this year, some users struggled to find their regular chats, and separate tabs were added afterwards. In a July interview cited by 9to5Mac, OpenAI president Greg Brockman agreed the interface was "kind of a mess" and said he expected the Work tab to disappear by the end of the year, with its abilities folded into ChatGPT.

The announcement also follows a similar move by a competitor: TechCrunch and Digital Trends note that Anthropic merged Claude's chat and Cowork features into one screen in September.

The interface change comes alongside a separate billing change already announced: from December, ChatGPT and Codex will share one usage allowance for Plus, Pro and Business subscribers. OpenAI says most people will not notice, though some may hit limits more often depending on the model and their usage. How the merged tab decides when a request becomes a longer Work-style job, and how that counts against limits, is not yet clear.