OpenAI just dropped something that feels straight out of a sci-fi movie. ChatGPT has a new “Agent Mode” that doesn’t just chat with you – it can actually do things on the internet. Book hotels. Check your calendar. Build slide decks. Shop for groceries. All by itself, using what they’re calling a “virtual computer.”
This is genuinely different from anything we’ve seen before with ChatGPT. We’re not talking about an AI that suggests what you should do. We’re talking about an AI that opens a browser, clicks buttons, fills out forms, and completes tasks while you watch.
It’s available now if you pay for ChatGPT Plus, Pro, or Team. And based on what people are testing, it’s both impressive and kinda scary at the same time.
What Agent Mode Actually Does
Think of it this way: instead of ChatGPT just telling you how to do something, it can now actually do it for you.
You can tell it to “look at my calendar and brief me on upcoming client meetings based on recent news,” and it’ll actually log into your calendar, check what meetings you have, search for relevant news about those clients, and write you a summary.
Or you can say, “Plan and buy ingredients to make Japanese breakfast for four people,” and it’ll search recipes, make a shopping list, find stores near you, and even add items to your cart on grocery delivery sites.
Someone asked it to analyse three competitors and create a slide deck. The agent researched all three companies, gathered data on their products and pricing, ran comparisons, and built an actual PowerPoint presentation with charts and analysis. All automatically.
That’s not an assistant giving advice. That’s an assistant doing your work.
How It Actually Works
OpenAI says Agent Mode runs on a “virtual “computer”—basically a sandboxed environment where the AI can browse websites, run code, and use apps without messing with your actual computer.
The agent has access to a few key tools:
A visual browser that lets it see websites like you do and click around. It’s not just reading code – it’s actually looking at pages and interacting with them.
A text browser for when it needs to quickly scan through articles or documentation without loading all the graphics.
A code terminal where it can run Python scripts, process data, or generate charts.
API connectors for services like Gmail, Google Calendar, GitHub, and Google Drive. Once you give permission, it can pull information from these services directly.
All of this happens in real time, and you can watch it work. There’s a live view showing you exactly what the agent’s doing – which website it’s visiting, what it’s clicking on, and what code it’s running.
And here’s the important part: before it does anything major like submitting a form or making a purchase, it asks for your approval. You’re still in control. Mostly.
What People Are Actually Using It For
Tech reviewers have been testing this thing non-stop since it launched in July. Here’s what they’ve discovered actually works:
Travel Planning Multiple people asked the agent to find and book hotels. One guy asked it to find a luxury hotel in Paris for specific dates. The agent pulled up Booking.com, entered the travel details, filtered results, found options, compared prices, and got all the way to the final checkout page. It stopped there because it needed payment info, but it handled everything else automatically.
Calendar Management Connect it to Google Calendar and you can ask stuff like “check my email for any schedule changes from John and update my calendar if meetings moved.” The agent reads your emails, finds scheduling mentions, and adjusts your calendar. You don’t have to do anything.
Research and Reports Several people asked it to research competitors or analyze markets. The agent searches multiple sources, compiles data into spreadsheets, creates charts, and builds presentation decks. One person asked for a detailed comparison of OpenAI versus Anthropic and got a full report with structured analysis.
Shopping It can browse e-commerce sites, compare products, filter by your requirements, and add items to carts. One reviewer had it shop for wedding outfits – it found options matching the dress code, compared prices across stores, and presented five choices with photos and links.
