On Oct 28 OpenAI announced through @ChatGPT that users can now text their dot, the always-on agent inside ChatGPT. You can hand it a task or something to watch using text, photos or voice notes, and it texts you proactively when there is a relevant update. Texting runs over iMessage or RCS, not plain SMS; only you can text your dot and it can only text you. It is rolling out in beta to a limited number of US Pro users and is not supported in Business or Enterprise workspaces. Texts pass through the third-party provider Linq, and OpenAI says the conversation is not end-to-end encrypted.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Scope: a limited beta for US Pro users; not supported in Business or Enterprise workspaces (OpenAI Help Center)
- ✓Channels: iMessage on iPhone and RCS on Android only; a plain SMS gets an automatic reply asking you to use iMessage, RCS or the app
- ✓Setup in 3 steps: open the dot's profile and choose Texting, enter your number to get a confirmation text, then enter the code
- ✓Privacy: texts route through third-party provider Linq, so they are not end-to-end encrypted; Linq keeps no message content after delivery, only metadata such as timestamps and delivery status
- ✓Context: texting shares the same memory and plugins as the dot in the app; reply STOP or turn it off under Texting to stop
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Background and pain point
OpenAI launched dots in late September: always-on agents with their own cloud computer that connect to the apps you authorize and keep working between conversations. Until now you mostly reached your dot inside the ChatGPT app or website, plus Slack. The point of an always-on agent is that it reaches out to you, and push notifications are easy to miss. Moving the dot into the phone's Messages app puts the agent where people already look every day, like a contact. OpenAI says it shipped the feature "by popular request".
Architecture and mechanism
- Channel: iMessage or RCS, sent and received by third-party messaging provider Linq; plain SMS is not supported, and you cannot call the dot's number.
- Isolation: one-to-one only. Only you can text your dot, it can only text you, it cannot join group texts, and it cannot see your other conversations.
- Shared context: texting uses the same memory and plugins as the dot in the app, so work carries across surfaces.
- Security: OpenAI says it ran penetration testing on the Linq integration with its frontier models and third-party security firms, but because Linq processes messages in transit, the conversation is not end-to-end encrypted even over iMessage or RCS.
Benchmarks
This is a product feature, not a model release, and OpenAI has published no benchmarks or usage numbers. The only public figures are the launch post's own engagement, about 2,700 likes and nearly 200,000 views at the time of writing.
Getting started
In the ChatGPT mobile app, desktop app or desktop web, open your dot's profile, choose Texting, enter your phone number and verify the code you receive. iPhones need iMessage on, Android phones need RCS. If Texting is missing, your account does not have access yet. OpenAI's Nick (@nickbaumann_) suggested on X telling your dot to text you for urgent matters while routine updates stay in ChatGPT and work items go to Slack. Because texts are not end-to-end encrypted, keep sensitive work in the app; reply STOP to opt out.
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