AI
OpenAI launches GPT-5.6, merges Codex into ChatGPT desktop app, and ships ChatGPT Work
OpenAI rolled out a sweeping set of product changes on July 9, centered on a new model family called GPT-5.6 and a redesigned desktop app that folds its Codex coding agent directly into ChatGPT. GPT-5.6 ships in three tiers: Sol for long-horizon agentic and planning work, Terra for balanced everyday use, and Luna for fast, high-volume tasks. A new ChatGPT Work mode powered by GPT-5.6 is available today on web and mobile for Pro, Enterprise, and Edu plans, with Plus and Business to follow in days. The desktop app, rolling out globally on macOS and Windows, gives every plan including Free access to both Work and Codex in one place, alongside a revamped in-app browser with authenticated-site support and multiple tabs, a new Chrome extension, and a faster Computer Use agent with picture-in-picture supervision.
Sam Altman personally highlighted Codex as the core engine behind the new work product, pushing back on any suggestion the coding agent is being sidelined. Early enterprise users back the model upgrade: Box CEO Aaron Levie said GPT-5.6 Sol showed a meaningful step up over GPT-5.5 on its internal Complex Work eval for hard, data-oriented document tasks, and Vercel's chief of software used the model and Codex to unblock an internal data science agent that earlier models could not handle. Developer researcher Simon Willison flagged new API additions in GPT-5.6 including programmatic tool calling and multi-agent capabilities as notable technical additions worth watching.
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