A few weeks ago, I was knee-deep in a calendar mess, wondering if I had double-booked myself again. I half-joked and asked ChatGPT to sort it out for me, then paused. Could it actually do that now?
Turns out it could. OpenAI’s new ChatGPT Agent Mode doesn’t just chat. It acts.
This is no longer about clever conversation. Now, ChatGPT plans meetings, checks emails, generates slides, and even helps with breakfast shopping. It is no longer science fiction. It is here, it works, and it is surprisingly capable.
What is Agent Mode
If ChatGPT was once the smart assistant waiting for instructions, Agent Mode is the version that rolls up its sleeves and gets on with it. It runs in a secure workspace using its own private browser. It connects to tools like Gmail, Google Calendar and GitHub, and knows how to use them.
You describe the task. It works out how to do it. You get a live view of what it is doing and can pause, take over or steer it in another direction at any time.
This is more than just asking questions. This is letting your assistant take real action without needing to be handheld through every step.
A Week With Agent Mode: Your Digital Assistant in Action
Using it can feel like having a super-efficient flatmate who never sleeps and genuinely wants to help.
In just one week, Agent Mode can:
• Pull key points from your inbox to prep for a meeting
• Flagg clashing appointments you missed
• Turn a mess of notes into a usable project brief
• Order ingredients for a Japanese breakfast (tofu included), though it can place it in your cart
• Create and emailed your weekly report, with some reminder of course
All of this came from secure connections to the apps you would already use. No manual uploading. No extra steps. It just got on with it.
What impressed me most is how it browses like a person. It clicks, scrolls and reacts to websites with real awareness. That part alone felt like a step into the future.
Who Can Use It
Agent Mode is not open to everyone at the moment.
You will need a ChatGPT Plus, Pro or Team subscription to access it. Each plan gives you a different number of monthly actions. If you are on the free plan, you will not see it just yet.
Once it is enabled, there is no setup or extra download. You simply select Agent from the tools menu and you are good to go.
Power Meets Caution
Of course, the moment you give your assistant access to your inbox and calendar, the question of privacy comes up. OpenAI has built in plenty of permissions and controls. You can watch what it is doing, pause it, or stop it completely.
Even so, it is worth being sensible. I am not using it for banking or anything sensitive. But for reports, summaries, planning and research, it is already proving incredibly useful.
This is no longer about smart replies. This is task execution, and it is starting to learn how I work.
So What’s Next
Agent Mode is a preview of how AI will shift from passive tool to proactive partner. The technology is already there. What needs to catch up is how we work with it, and how much we choose to trust it.
There will be more of these tools. There will be more questions around data and responsibility. But watching an assistant pull off a seamless grocery run, prep my week and write a decent slide deck before lunch? That still blows my mind.