Agent features are the fastest-moving part of AI right now, with new names and capabilities arriving every few weeks. Check the date this article was published. Softwired updates its training material as the tools change, so contact us if you need the latest.
The short answer
An agent is an AI tool that does a whole job for you. You describe an outcome, such as "research these five suppliers and build a comparison spreadsheet". The agent plans the steps, gathers what it needs from websites, files and connected apps, and hands back the finished file. It checks with you before anything important.
ChatGPT calls this Work. Claude calls it Cowork, which is being merged into every conversation in stages. Gemini calls it Task. Microsoft 365 Copilot has Copilot Cowork plus specialist agents such as Researcher.
If handing work to an AI makes you nervous, that caution is useful. The safety section below sets out five habits that keep you in control.
Chat compared with an agent
| Chat | Agent | |
|---|---|---|
| You give it | A question | An outcome |
| It gives back | An answer | A finished piece of work (document, spreadsheet, deck, completed actions) |
| How long | Seconds | Minutes or longer, often in the background |
| What it can touch | What you paste or upload | Files, websites, connected apps and sometimes your computer, with permission |
| Your job | Read the answer | Brief it well, approve key actions, review the result |
What each tool calls it
| Tool | Name | Key facts (checked 31 October 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Work | Switch with the Chat/Work toggle. Work handles longer, multi-step jobs and produces documents, spreadsheets, presentations, reports and Sites. It's on paid plans other than Free and Go. Work runs in the cloud on web and mobile, and the desktop app can use local files and apps with your permission. Scheduled Tasks can run once, repeat, start on a trigger (such as a new Gmail message) or watch for changes. Work replaced the old agent mode. |
| ChatGPT | Dots | Always-on agents that keep working between conversations. They use a cloud computer, a browser and your connected apps, and ask for approval on important actions. Dots is rolling out on Pro and Business premium seats, and is in beta on Enterprise, Edu and Healthcare where an admin turns it on. |
| Claude | Cowork, merged into every conversation | Cowork is on all paid plans. The combined chat and Cowork experience is rolling out to Pro, Max and Ultra, is in beta for Team, and is on Enterprise where enabled. Accounts that have it see no mode to choose. Tasks run in the cloud and reach your computer only through the Claude Desktop app, for folders you've connected. Approval modes include Manually approve and Automatically approve. Claude always asks before permanently deleting files. |
| Gemini | Task (formerly Spark) | Switch with the Chat/Task toggle next to the prompt box. Task needs a personal Google account, age 18 or over, Google AI Pro or Ultra, Keep Activity on and Personal Intelligence opted in. It runs up to 15 tasks at once. Task is available in Gemini regions other than the EEA, Switzerland, the UK and Nigeria. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Copilot Cowork | At work, Microsoft has made Copilot Cowork available to Microsoft 365 Copilot tenants since June 2026. For personal use, it's in preview on Microsoft 365 Premium and Pro, in the US and Canada only. It takes on multi-step work using your data, skills and apps, stops at approval checkpoints, and hands back finished files. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Researcher, Analyst and other agents | Specialist agents. Researcher and Analyst need a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence. |
| Grok | Multi-agent mode | In xAI's Grok, parallel agents each work on part of a hard question, and Grok merges the results. It is a reasoning mode for answering questions. Grok Bot is a separate product that gives you AI teammates on a persistent cloud computer. |
| Meta AI | Tasks on your behalf | Meta says that since July 2026, Meta AI can make plans, connect to email and calendar apps, create slides and handle recurring tasks, rolling out in select markets. Australian availability: not confirmed. |
How you'd actually use it
Write a brief, as you would for a colleague
Agents do better with the brief you'd give a capable new colleague. Cover four things:
- Outcome: "A one-page comparison of three accounting software options."
- Format: "A spreadsheet with one row per product and a summary tab."
- Inputs: "Use our requirements doc in Drive and official vendor websites only."
- Limits: "Don't contact anyone or sign up for anything."
Jobs that suit an agent
- "Go through the 12 interview notes in this folder and pull out the top themes, with a quote for each."
- "Every Monday at 8am, summarise new messages in our project channel and list anything waiting on me."
- "Draft replies to this week's customer enquiries in Gmail. Leave them as drafts."
Jobs to keep for yourself, for now
Keep payments, contract signing, unreviewed messages to customers, and changes to important records without a backup in your own hands.
Staying safe with agents
The vendors' own safety guidance says agents can make mistakes. It also warns about prompt injection: hidden instructions inside a website, email or document that try to make the agent do something you didn't ask for. Five habits keep you in control:
- Keep approvals on for sending, deleting, buying and submitting. Gemini asks before these actions. In Claude, choose Manually approve for sensitive work.
- Start with read-only work. Let the agent read and draft before you let it act.
- Take over the browser yourself to enter passwords or card numbers, and keep them out of the chat.
- Watch the first few runs of any scheduled task.
- Check the output before you use it, with the same care you'd give a new team member's first piece of work.
Frequently asked questions
What happened to ChatGPT agent mode?
OpenAI says ChatGPT agent is no longer available. Use ChatGPT Work for longer, multi-step tasks.
Where did Gemini Spark go?
Google renamed it Task. You'll find it in the Chat and Task toggle next to the prompt box, and your existing tasks and schedules are still in the sidebar.
Is Claude Cowork a separate app?
It used to be a separate mode. Anthropic is merging chat and Cowork into one conversation in Claude, in stages. If your message box still shows "Chat" and "Cowork" options, you don't have the new experience yet.
Do agents use more of my plan?
Yes. Vendors say longer agent tasks use more of your plan's allowance than a quick question does.
Related guides
- AI connectors, apps and MCP explained
- Why AI gets things wrong and how to check its work
- Custom GPTs, Gems, skills and plugins explained
Put it to work with AI On Ramp
Agents earn their keep once someone has decided what they may do without asking.
AI On Ramp gets your team using AI with confidence, on their own work and across teams, while you keep its cost and risk under control. We set up the tools, then our consultants sit beside your most advanced AI users and build real in-house workflows with them. Your nominated AI Lead gets the governance tools and our ongoing support to keep the business current as the tools change. We bring deep technical expertise and decades of business change management, and we work face to face from Brisbane and along Australia's east coast. See how AI On Ramp works.
Want to talk through how this applies to your team? Book a call with Softwired.
