ChatGPT Dots Gain Widget and New Shortcuts Actions

Late on Friday, OpenAI updated the ChatGPT app for iOS and iPadOS. The update adds a new widget for your Dot and three Shortcuts actions that let you control it in different ways. These features are well designed and offer useful new ways to automate tasks.

First, the Dot widget is very simple but also very useful. I have set up the ChatGPT app to open directly to its Codex view because that is how I usually use it. I open Codex, check on a project that is still running, and give it any information it needs to keep making progress.

But lately, I have been using my Dot, Puck, more often to start research, ask quick questions, and check things like my email. When the app opens in Codex, I have to tap around to get to my Dot. ChatGPT's new small widget saves me those extra steps. The widget has two modes. The first shows only your Dot's picture. Tap it to open your conversation with your Dot. If you edit your Dot, you can also turn on the “Show shortcut button” option. This adds message and voice buttons below your Dot, so you can start a voice call with it. This is a simple feature, but it is great to be able to open Codex through the ChatGPT app or quickly check my Dot conversation using the widget.

The other interesting feature is a set of three Shortcuts actions. They let you send a message to your Dot, dictate a message, or call it. Each action has two settings: which Dot to use and how you want to communicate with it. The first setting is interesting because tapping it opens a list containing your only Dot. Right now, you can have only one Dot. However, this list strongly suggests that OpenAI may soon let people create multiple Dots. OpenAI hinted at this possibility during its DevDay. After all, why include a setting that opens a list if there is only one option?

You can use these actions in your Shortcuts, access them through Spotlight Search, or connect them to the Action button on an iPhone. This lets you open your Dot conversation in any of the three modes. I have set my Action button to start a call with my Dot. When I go for a walk, I often think of tasks I need to do or ideas for research. I want to see whether having short calls with my Dot helps me get started on these ideas, so they are waiting for me in ChatGPT when I get home.

These actions and the new widget are excellent additions to OpenAI's app. They are better than Anthropic's more basic widgets and Shortcuts options. However, I would like to see Dots work more closely with Shortcuts. The current actions only open your Dot conversation in one of three modes. I would love to connect Dots to other apps using actions that can take information from other sources and send results to other actions.

I have a few more requests. OpenAI should support multiple Dots soon. It should also make it easier to switch between Macs when using the same Dot with more than one computer. Dots also still have some bugs. Scheduled tasks fail too often, and it is not always clear why they fail.

Even so, this update is worth trying if you find Dots useful. One of their main strengths is that you can use them anywhere you can access ChatGPT. With the new widget and Shortcuts actions, reaching your Dot from those places is now easier than ever.