At its DevDay conference on September 29, OpenAI introduced dots, which are AI agents that live inside ChatGPT. According to SiliconANGLE's report, each dot works toward a goal you assign, can "carry the job forward without direction at every step," and learns your preferences from feedback. Dots connect to more than 4,000 apps through OpenAI's plugins, including Slack and Microsoft Teams.
SiliconANGLE reports that dots are rolling out to ChatGPT Pro and Business Premium subscribers, with one agent included in those plans. OpenAI has not disclosed pricing for additional agents. Actions that touch your accounts or share information go through a review step, and a monitoring system can pause an agent over a safety concern. The same report carries OpenAI's caveat that "agents can still make mistakes," so people still need to review consequential work.
This follows Meta's small-business agent launch a day earlier. Two of the largest AI platforms now ship background agents as a standard plan feature.
What it means for an SMB
- The agent is now part of the subscription. If you already pay for a qualifying ChatGPT plan, cost matters less than being clear about what the agent is allowed to do.
- Start with a narrow, repeatable task, such as preparing invoice drafts or a weekly pipeline summary. An agent with a vague goal produces vague work.
- Let autonomy grow as the agent proves itself. Begin with drafts only, then loosen the rules as it shows it's reliable. Our Earned Autonomy guide walks through the steps.
- Check which plan you're on before planning around dots. SiliconANGLE reports that Pro subscribers in the UK, EEA and Switzerland are excluded for now.