OpenAI announced a new ChatGPT plugin on Thursday that allows its AI model to connect to iMessage to read and learn from users’ messages and even send messages on behalf of people.
“On Apple silicon Macs, the Apple Messages plugin in the ChatGPT desktop app can read and search iMessage, SMS, and RCS conversations and prepare or send messages through Messages,” the company said.
The company added that ChatGPT will ask users for permission before sending a message: “By default, ChatGPT asks the user to approve the message and recipients before sending. Business workspace admins can disable Apple Messages through the existing Computer Use control.”
However, users could change that setting to allow AI to automatically send messages without approval. OpenAI warns users about allowing that feature and suggests keeping an eye on the chatbot for potential mistakes. The company says enabling persistent approval “removes your final chance to review a message before ChatGPT sends it as you. Use it only when you accept that risk.”
The new capability comes as Apple overhauls Siri with a new AI-powered version of its longtime virtual assistant. Apple users have reportedly grown frustrated with Siri as it has fallen behind newer AI tools, prompting the tech giant to pursue a major upgrade. Apple promises its new AI will be “a profoundly more capable and personal assistant with personal context understanding, broad world knowledge, and onscreen awareness.”
One Apple user told The Daily Wire, “I’ve thought about switching to Android because Google’s Gemini is a masterclass. You can have a full conversation with Gemini, getting it to fully explain things to you, but Siri, on the other hand, is very manual and slow.” Google’s Gemini is built into Google’s Android phones.
The Apple user added that he is looking forward to the new Siri model, saying Apple’s broader ecosystem has kept him from switching to competing products.
Apple’s promised Siri debut could threaten OpenAI’s new plugin. Historically, Apple has made it difficult for third-party apps to connect to iMessage, arguing that users should have “transparency, consent, and control” over apps accessing their data. Through its new plugin, however, OpenAI appears to have worked around restrictions on gaining direct access to iMessage and used AppleScript and Accessibility paired with user-granted permission to access and control the iMessage app.
OpenAI launched its new plugin after Apple filed a lawsuit against the company on July 10, alleging that it stole trade secrets and used Apple’s intellectual property to develop its own consumer products.
OpenAI responded to the lawsuit, saying, “We have no interest in other companies’ trade secrets. We remain focused on building innovative technology that empowers people everywhere.”
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the AI giant’s new plugin.
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