OpenAI's Dots agent acts more like a coworker than a shopping assistant

OpenAI this week introduced Dots, a new agent platform featuring cute, blob-like customizable avatars similar to rival products. Unlike more consumer-focused competitors, however, Dots is initially limited to OpenAI's highest-tier accounts, including the $100-per-month Pro subscription.

The interface resembles other agent tools: users chat with the agent in one window while watching it operate a virtual machine in another. The agent comes with built-in access to apps like Blender and GIMP, and can also be connected to a user's personal computer.

A Verge reporter tested Dots on several everyday tasks. When trying to schedule an internet service installation, the agent got stuck at a security check requiring a sustained mouse hold that its browser controls couldn't perform, forcing the reporter to complete that step manually. Later, the agent failed to find a free trial option at a coworking space, instead offering a paid day pass, while a competing agent located the same trial option successfully. The agent also couldn't log into an IKEA account due to a looping security check, and only managed to order food from a local teriyaki restaurant after the reporter helped it log into an Uber Eats account.

The agent performed noticeably better on tasks where it had full access and control, such as redesigning the reporter's personal website and compiling video clips into a social-media-ready file. It also successfully carried out changes dictated verbally over a phone call.

The reporter concluded that Dots feels more like a coding tool adapted for everyday users and could be valuable in work settings, but ran into more security checks and technical obstacles on personal tasks compared to other AI agents she had tested.