OpenAI is taking a step closer to turning ChatGPT into a full-fledged digital assistant with the launch of a new beta feature called Tasks. This functionality, available to Plus, Team, and Pro subscribers starting today, allows users to set reminders and schedule recurring actions. By integrating this feature, OpenAI aims to extend ChatGPT’s capabilities beyond real-time conversations, making it more akin to traditional virtual assistants like Google Assistant or Siri — but with the advantage of ChatGPT’s more advanced language processing.
How Tasks Works
With Tasks, users can instruct ChatGPT to perform specific actions at designated times. Whether it’s a daily 7 AM weather update, a reminder about your passport’s expiration date, or even a knock-knock joke to entertain your kids before bedtime, the chatbot can now handle it all. Tasks can be scheduled as either one-time or recurring actions.
To access the feature, subscribers need to select the “4.0 with scheduled tasks” option in ChatGPT’s model picker. Once enabled, setting up a task is as simple as typing out what you want done and specifying when it should happen. Additionally, ChatGPT can suggest tasks based on ongoing conversations, although users must explicitly approve these suggestions before they’re activated. While this proactive feature has the potential to streamline scheduling, there’s also the risk of creating unintended clutter if suggestions are not carefully managed.
Managing and Modifying Tasks
All scheduled tasks are easy to manage. Users can either modify them directly in chat threads or navigate to the new Tasks section in the profile menu on the web interface. This section offers a centralized view of all active tasks, allowing users to make adjustments or cancel them entirely. To keep things manageable, OpenAI has limited the number of active tasks to 10 per user.
When a task is completed, notifications are sent across platforms, including web, desktop, and mobile, ensuring users are promptly informed.
Premium Access and Limitations
As of now, Tasks is exclusive to paying subscribers, with OpenAI offering monthly subscription tiers of $20 and $200. There’s no indication of whether this feature will become available to free users, suggesting that Tasks might remain part of OpenAI’s strategy to enhance the value of its premium offerings.
This shift in functionality marks a significant departure for ChatGPT, which has so far focused on responding to immediate requests in real time. With the introduction of Tasks, OpenAI is venturing into a domain traditionally dominated by virtual assistants.
Beyond Simple Scheduling: The Future of Agentic AI
OpenAI’s ambitions for Tasks don’t stop at basic scheduling. Reports suggest that the company is exploring more advanced features to further expand ChatGPT’s capabilities. According to Bloomberg, OpenAI plans to release “Operator,” an autonomous AI agent capable of independently controlling computers, later this month. Meanwhile, reverse engineer Tibor Blaho uncovered details about an internal project codenamed “Caterpillar.” This system could potentially integrate with Tasks, enabling ChatGPT to perform tasks such as searching for specific information, analyzing problems, summarizing data, navigating websites, and accessing documents.
When combined, these developments could transform ChatGPT into an "agentic AI" capable of executing complex, multi-step tasks with minimal human intervention. While OpenAI’s long-term goal is to create AI systems that can interact with environments, learn from feedback, and make decisions autonomously, the current iteration of Tasks is still relatively basic, functioning more like a sophisticated scripting tool.
Challenges and Reliability Concerns
As promising as these developments are, questions remain about the reliability of scheduled tasks. What happens if the system fails to deliver a time-sensitive reminder or produces incorrect information? OpenAI’s decision to launch Tasks in beta suggests that the company is still fine-tuning the feature and gathering feedback to address these concerns.
Previous demos of OpenAI’s agentic capabilities have revealed accuracy issues, raising doubts about the system’s readiness for high-stakes applications. However, OpenAI’s ongoing efforts indicate a commitment to overcoming these challenges and building a more dependable system.
Getting Started with Tasks
If you’re a paying subscriber, you can start experimenting with Tasks today by selecting the “4.0 with scheduled tasks” option in your model picker. Keep in mind that the feature is still in beta, so it’s wise not to rely on it for critical reminders just yet.
A New Era for ChatGPT
The addition of Tasks represents a significant step in ChatGPT’s evolution, broadening its role from a conversational tool to a practical digital assistant. As OpenAI continues to refine its capabilities and introduce new features, ChatGPT is poised to become an even more integral part of users’ daily lives. Whether Tasks delivers on its promise of reliability and utility will ultimately determine how well it competes with established virtual assistants. But one thing is clear: OpenAI is pushing the boundaries of what conversational AI can achieve.
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