ChatGPT's new Mac memory watches what you do, without screenshots

OpenAI has begun rolling out Computer History, an optional feature for ChatGPT Work and Codex on macOS that watches day-to-day activity across applications and websites and turns it into memories and a timeline without taking screenshots, according to The New Stack.

At a glance

• The system records interaction events such as clicking, typing and application switches, an approach OpenAI's Dominik Kundel says captures memories faster and more efficiently than screen or audio capture.
• The feature is off by default, applications and websites can be excluded through a setting in the ChatGPT desktop app, and a new macOS menu bar entry can exclude any app or pause capture.
• Captured data is stored locally and can be reviewed or deleted, the model gets access to summaries of it, and the feature is reaching Pro, Business and Enterprise users of ChatGPT Work and Codex.

Why it matters Continuous activity capture on a work machine has a difficult record, and the choices here read as an answer to it: no screen or audio capture, storage on the device, an off switch in the menu bar. The remaining question sits a layer up. Summaries of a working day still reach the model, and that detail is likely to shape how security teams and employers treat the feature.

Computer History logs clicks, typing and app switches instead of screen captures

Computer History is optional and runs with the user's permission, watching day-to-day activity across applications and websites and converting it into memories and a timeline. OpenAI says that lets ChatGPT answer questions such as what was being debugged yesterday or where work stopped on a pull request. Dominik Kundel of OpenAI described the mechanism in the announcement video.

Computer History doesn't rely on screen or audio capture. Instead, it captures interaction events like clicking, typing, app switches, and more, so it can capture memories faster and more efficiently.

OpenAI says the history also gives ChatGPT a route to the files, documents and conversations relevant to a request without the user restating context, whether that material sits in Google Docs, Slack or an open browser tab. It also covers the case of something read earlier that a user cannot locate.

Chronicle generated its timeline from screen captures and OCR

Computer History is also separate from Chronicle, an earlier OpenAI research experiment that pursued the same result by other means. Chronicle generated its timeline from screen captures and optical character recognition, the method Computer History replaces with a log of interface events.

It is also distinct from Record & Replay, a feature for ChatGPT and Codex in which a user demonstrates a workflow and the system turns that demonstration into a reusable skill. Kundel says Computer History can be used to create skills from actions a user has just performed.

Kundel also points to running an automation each morning that drafts a standup update for a team, and to having an agent tailor its use of tools to how an individual works. He says that once agents understand what a user does and how they work, it changes how those agents can be engaged.

Exclusions live in a new macOS menu bar entry

OpenAI says users get full control over which applications and websites Computer History can access. A new menu bar entry on macOS allows any app to be excluded from the feature, and a separate setting in the ChatGPT desktop app covers both applications and websites.

The feature is off by default, and capture can be paused from the menu bar at any time. All of the data is stored locally, so a user can see what the system captures and delete anything that should not become part of the timeline, and the model gets access to summaries of what is stored.

What's next OpenAI says the rollout is global for the eligible plans, with one exception: users in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and Switzerland will get access in the coming weeks. That phrase is the only timing OpenAI has attached to those three markets, and no calendar date accompanies the announcement for those regions.