ChatGPT's Mac app gets a glowup with new coding and notetaking features

Using ChatGPT for desktop on a Mac with XCode.

(Image credit: Future)

OpenAI's introduced new features for the ChatGPT macOS app.
Advanced Voice Mode enables users to engage with ChatGPT through voice commands.
ChatGPT's "Working with Apps" feature allows it to interact directly with coding and notetaking apps.

For Day 11 of the 12 Days of OpenAI, the company moved from the landline phone to your computer, specifically macOS. OpenAI CPO Kevin Weil demonstrated how Mac owners using the ChatGPT desktop app will see it floating on their screen like a friendly digital sidekick.

There's no need to even type requests to it, thanks to the inclusion of Advanced Voice Mode on the desktop app now. You can just speak aloud, and ChatGPT will fulfill your requests even when you're doing other things. Instead of switching between tabs or opening a browser, you can call ChatGPT whenever needed to draft an email, brainstorm ideas, or fix some code.

Speaking of coding, the new “Working with Apps” feature has ChatGPT running around many apps on your computer, especially for coding. You can give it access to apps on your Mac, and it’ll peek inside, understand what’s going on, and lend a helping hand.

Say you’re using a code editor like Warp and staring at a long, confusing list of code. Instead of scrolling endlessly, you can ask ChatGPT to analyze what’s on the screen and it will offer suggestions, explanations, or even write new code snippets. OpenAI showcased how by asking ChatGPT to write some code directly into Xcode, Apple’s app development tool.

Notes for the holidays

The apps ChatGPT works with aren't limited to coding services either. The AI assistant will write in English and programming languages right into apps like Apple Notes, Quip, and Notion. If you’re planning a trip and using Notion to jot down ideas, you can ask ChatGPT to help flesh them out, including citing sources from the internet.

If you're a Mac user, the new features are all available. For Windows users, an update to the existing app is coming soon, though OpenAI hasn’t given a specific timeframe.

These aren't the dramatic announcements of some of the previous days, but it's showcasing OpenAI's vision of ChatGPT spreading beyond the chat window. The AI could become a much more active collaborator, capable of blending multiple apps' powers into one convenient package. This is what OpenAI calls the “agentic” approach to AI, where ChatGPT performs tasks on your behalf, taking some of the workload off your shoulders.

One day to go, let's see if OpenAI can close out with as much excitement as they began. It has to be better than the last verse of the song. Nobody wants to take 12 drummer drumming home, but a brand new AI model might be a nice stocking stuffer.

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Eric Hal Schwartz is a freelance writer for TechRadar with more than 15 years of experience covering the intersection of the world and technology. For the last five years, he served as head writer for Voicebot.ai and was on the leading edge of reporting on generative AI and large language models. He's since become an expert on the products of generative AI models, such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Anthropic’s Claude, Google Gemini, and every other synthetic media tool. His experience runs the gamut of media, including print, digital, broadcast, and live events. Now, he's continuing to tell the stories people want and need to hear about the rapidly evolving AI space and its impact on their lives. Eric is based in New York City.