Reply from notifications, sharing also possible
Samir Ahmed, who oversees dots and ChatGPT at OpenAI, announced an update to the always-on AI agent "dots" on X on Nov. 4 (Nov. 5 Japan time). In the latest app, users can reply on the spot from iOS notifications. ChatGPT's official account reposted the post.
the team has been laser-focused on making dots significantly faster and more reliable. some updates in the latest app release… - you can now reply to your dot inline from a notification on iOS - share anything directly to your dot in iOS - open your dot from the iPhone Action button - faster loading when you tap in from a notification - gmail links deeplink to the exact email inside the gmail app
According to the post, the team has been working to make dots faster and more reliable. On iOS, in addition to replying to notifications, users can now share any content directly to dots. The attached screen shows a reply field open below a notification that arrived on the lock screen. Loading when opening from a notification was also made faster, and opening a Gmail link now goes directly to the relevant email in the Gmail app.
dots is an agent that OpenAI announced in September to get errands done on users' behalf. In early October, it became possible to create one from the smartphone app, and on Oct. 28, messaging via iMessage and RCS was released as a beta for Pro plan users in the U.S. The first item listed in this post is a feature for interactions within the iPhone app.
How the Action button differs from October's feature is unconfirmed
Ahmed also said dots can now be opened from the Action button on the side of the iPhone. However, according to OpenAI's update notes, in the week of Oct. 12-16, it had already become possible to create an "Open your dot" shortcut and assign it to the Action button on supported models. That feature was rolled out gradually in version 1.2026.279 of the ChatGPT iOS app and lets users choose message, voice input or call mode.
The screen in this post also shows "Open your dot" in the shortcut item of the Action button settings. The post does not say what changed from October's feature, and this is unconfirmed.
Calls connect faster, end with "goodbye"
In a follow-up post, Ahmed said the time it takes to connect a call with dots had been greatly shortened. He did not give a figure for how much shorter it is. In response to user requests, calls now end when users say "goodbye" to dots. Users can end calls without using their hands.
Among always-on agents, rival Grok Bot also added support for the iPhone Action button on Oct. 19. According to iPhone in Canada, Grok Bot had also sped up voice calls in an Oct. 17 update.
Handoff of tasks stabilized on Windows
For Windows users, he listed three improvements. He said the handoff of tasks between dots and threads on the user's computer was stabilized, dots' operation of the computer and browser was greatly improved, and tasks using local MCP tools (a mechanism for connecting outside tools to AI) and plugins were stabilized.
RuntimeWire reported that these fixes address issues that affect whether users keep using the agent. At the time of the October update, MacStories had pointed out that tasks scheduled by dots sometimes failed. No mention of this point can be found in the latest posts.
Ahmed also said that telling dots about features users want built or things they want fixed will reach the development team.
Plans covered and Android support unconfirmed
The series of posts did not state the app version containing the features. The latest U.S. App Store version is 1.2026.300, and its release notes say only "Bug fixes and small improvements." Whether the new features are included in this version is unconfirmed. The latest entry in OpenAI's update notes is for the week of Oct. 26-30, and as of a check on Nov. 5, this update was not listed.
The posts also do not say which plans or regions are covered or whether the rollout is gradual. dots is offered to the Pro plan and the business-oriented Business Premium, among others, and at the September launch, the Pro plan offering excluded the European Economic Area, Switzerland and the U.K. Whether this update changed those conditions is unconfirmed.
Replying to notifications and sharing were listed in the post as iOS features. It was not stated whether the same features will come to Android users.
