OpenAI Introduces Computer History Feature on macOS
A newly launched feature for the ChatGPT desktop app on macOS, known as Computer History, is designed to enhance user experience by learning from user activity, suggesting automations, and keeping track of unfinished tasks. It compiles a timeline of user actions, enabling ChatGPT and Codex to refer to past activities when responding to user requests.
Privacy Options and User Control
The Computer History feature is designed with user consent as a priority, being opt-in rather than opt-out. Users have the option to exclude specific apps and websites from this tracking. Additionally, users can delete entries for more precise control. Ari Weinstein, Product and Engineering manager at OpenAI, confirmed via X that this feature will automatically exclude content viewed in incognito or private browser tabs.
Functionality Demonstrated
Dominik Kundel, from OpenAI’s Developer Experiences team, demonstrated the tool’s capabilities in a brief video. He showcased how the app could retrieve the last edited document, check if it had been shared on Slack, and provide a summary of morning activities. Unlike Microsoft’s previously criticised Windows Recall feature that used screenshots, OpenAI’s Computer History strictly utilizes “events” without capturing images, videos, or audio.
Reporting based on coverage first published by theverge.com.