assistant · OpenAI

ChatGPT

OpenAI’s general-purpose assistant, spanning conversational work, research, files, images, connected apps, and computer-using agent workflows.

Research state15

classified capabilities

Verified 2026-07-27

Platforms

Web · macOS · Windows · iOS · Android

Plans tracked

Free · Plus · Pro · Business · Enterprise · Edu

Evidence

18 official sources

Capability ledger

What the evidence supports.

Open a classified state for its direct answer and source record.

Capability	State	Scope	Evidence	Verified
MCP client	Selected plans	Business, Enterprise, Edu	1 primary	2026-08-01
Live web search	Supported	Product-wide	1 primary	2026-07-27
Browser control	Selected plans	Pro, Plus, Business	1 primary	2026-08-01
Terminal access	Supported with conditions	Agent mode runs commands in a terminal on ChatGPT's virtual computer, not the user's local shell. The help center says agent mode is paid plans only, not Free, and lists monthly limits for Plus, Pro, Business, and Enterprise. Edu appears in workspace-control headings but not in that limit table, so it is not recorded as a confirmed plan. ChatGPT Work also documents shell commands, with availability depending on plan, platform, region, rollout, and workspace settings. Codex CLI is a separate product.	3 primary	2026-10-13
Code execution	Supported	Free, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu	3 primary	2026-10-11
File upload	Supported	Free, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu	3 primary	2026-10-06
PDF analysis	Supported	Free, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu	3 primary	2026-10-06
Spreadsheet analysis	Supported	Free, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu	3 primary	2026-10-11
Image input	Supported	Free, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu	3 primary	2026-10-11
Image generation	Supported	Product-wide	1 primary	2026-08-01
Persistent memory	Supported with conditions	Product-wide	1 primary	2026-07-27
Background agents	Selected plans	Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu	2 primary	2026-08-25
Third-party connectors	Supported	Free, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu	3 primary	2026-09-15
Desktop application	Supported	macOS, Windows	1 primary	2026-07-27
IDE integration	Selected platforms	macOS	3 primary	2026-10-13

Recorded changes

State history.

2025-12-17

Third-party connectors

Conditional Plans

OpenAI renamed connectors to apps and documented a unified directory with file search, deep research, sync, and action capabilities.

2026-07-29

File upload

Plans Yes

File upload scoped across Free through Enterprise/Edu; Free is limited rather than excluded.

2026-07-29

PDF analysis

Plans Yes

PDF analysis available across Free through Enterprise/Edu with Free limited quotas.

2026-07-29

Spreadsheet analysis

Plans Yes

Spreadsheet analysis documented across Free (limited) and paid plans via data analysis plus Excel add-in scope.

2026-07-29

Image input

Plans Yes

Image input present on Free through paid plans; Free limited.

2026-07-29

Third-party connectors

Plans Yes

Third-party apps/plugins available across Free through Enterprise/Edu with plan- and admin-specific gates.

2026-08-04

Background agents

Unknown Plans

Scheduled Tasks establish asynchronous background work on named paid plans including Edu.

2026-08-11

Code execution

Plans Yes

Free included for code-backed data analysis with limited quotas.

2026-10-13

Terminal access

Unknown Conditional

Agent launch note documents a terminal on ChatGPT's virtual computer. ChatGPT Work docs document shell commands. The agent help article says agent mode is not on Free.

2026-10-13

IDE integration

Unknown Platforms

Work with Apps documents IDE file reads and edits from the ChatGPT macOS app. The OpenAI Marketplace listing documents the VS Code connection. No plan list was invented.

Evidence inventory

Primary sources used.