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Yes. ChatGPT can now read the pages open in Google Chrome and carry out tasks in them for you, after OpenAI updated its official extension on October 15, 2026. To use it: install the official ChatGPT extension from the Chrome Web Store, install the ChatGPT desktop app on Mac or Windows, then open Settings and Computer Use in the app and connect your browser. After that, type @Chrome in a Work chat and describe the task. In regular Chat the extension only reads your tabs; filling forms, sending messages and downloading files happen in Work, and ChatGPT asks your permission before it touches any new website.
What is new in the ChatGPT extension for Chrome?
According to the extension's Chrome Web Store page, version 1.26.1005.11759 shipped on October 15, 2026, and more than 7 million people use the extension. OpenAI describes it as letting ChatGPT desktop and web use your browser to complete tasks, in the background, without taking over the tab you are working in. The two modes differ clearly:
| Mode | What it does in Chrome | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Chat | Reads your open tabs and selected text, and answers about them | Summarise this page, or compare three open offers |
| Work | Controls tabs and runs multi-step actions on sites where you are signed in | Fill an order form, send a message, download invoices, group tabs |
The official extension guide says ChatGPT can read or act on sites where you are already signed in, such as LinkedIn, Salesforce, Gmail and your company's internal tools. That is the real difference from the app's built-in browser, which uses a separate profile that cannot see your sessions.
What do you need before you start?
- A supported browser: the extension works in five browsers: Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi. Side chat is available in four of them; only Opera lacks it.
- The ChatGPT desktop app: from the official download page. Running tasks through Computer Use is available on macOS and Windows with ChatGPT Work and Codex, according to the Computer Use page.
- A ChatGPT account: Saudi Arabia is on OpenAI's list of supported countries, and OpenAI warns that use from outside those countries may get the account suspended.
OpenAI says browser availability can depend on rollout and on company workspace settings, so if you do not see Work or the browser option, the rollout may not have reached your account yet.
How do you turn it on, step by step?
- Update the ChatGPT desktop app to the latest version.
- Open Settings, then Computer Use. If your browser is not listed, expand More browsers.
- Select your browser and click Install beside it to open the extension's store page, then install it and read the permissions the browser asks for.
- Go back to Computer Use and check that the browser now shows Manage: that means it is connected.
- Start a new Work chat and type @Chrome followed by your task, from the same browser profile where you installed the extension.
An example of a request that reads tabs:
@Chrome compare the prices in my open tabs and put them in a tableAnd one that carries out a task:
@Chrome open the supplier portal and fill the order form from these notesYou can also stay inside Chrome: click the ChatGPT icon in the toolbar to open side chat next to the page, or right-click the page and choose Ask ChatGPT. On a Mac the shortcut is Cmd+Shift+period. Chats you start there also appear in the app, so you can continue from either place.
What can ChatGPT do in your browser?
This is the list OpenAI gives on the extension page:
- Research across live and signed-in websites.
- Create and edit documents, spreadsheets and slides.
- Enter data into any record system, such as timesheets, inventory or a CMS.
- Summarise any tab and answer questions about it.
- File expenses and download files and images in bulk.
- Test and validate websites, and organise and clean up your tabs.
On YouTube it can explain or summarise a video, or answer questions about it, using the timestamped captions when they are available.
How do you control which sites it uses?
By default ChatGPT asks before it interacts with each new website, and offers four choices:
| Choice | What it means | When to pick it |
|---|---|---|
| Allow once | Uses the site one time | The safe choice for any new site |
| Allow for this site | Returns to the site without asking | A trusted site you work on often |
| Allow for all sites | Uses any site without asking | We advise against it; OpenAI itself marks it as elevated risk |
| Decline | Blocks it from the site | Banks, government portals and anything sensitive |
Under Settings, Computer Use, Manage you keep an allowlist and a blocklist of domains, shared by all connected browsers. Browser history is different: ChatGPT asks each time it needs it, and there is no always-allow option.
Is it safe for your company accounts?
On install Chrome asks for eight broad permissions, including reading and changing all your data on all websites, reading your browsing history on all your signed-in devices, access to the page debugger, and managing downloads, bookmarks and tab groups. OpenAI says it does not store a separate complete record of what the extension does; it stores only what becomes part of the chat, such as text read from a page, screenshots and summaries.
The bigger risk is not the permissions but the pages themselves. The official documentation explicitly asks you to treat page content as untrusted, because a malicious or misleading page can carry hidden instructions that push ChatGPT to copy your data somewhere you did not intend. So for companies we suggest:
- Install the extension in a separate work profile, not the one you use for banking or personal email.
- Choose Allow once for new sites, and never Allow for all sites.
- Put banks, government portals and payroll systems on the blocklist.
- Do not send passwords or sensitive customer data through tasks, and stay at the screen to review every permission prompt.
Note too that the extension is rated 1.9 out of 5 from 959 ratings in the store and is available in English only, so try it on a small task before relying on it for daily work. To see what Work does beyond the browser, read our article on ChatGPT Work and how it runs your business tasks.
What if ChatGPT cannot connect to your browser?
- Check that the site is not on your blocklist.
- Update the desktop app, and remove any old duplicate copy of ChatGPT or Codex.
- Restart the browser and make sure you are in the profile where the extension is installed.
- If Computer Use still shows Install instead of Manage, run the setup again.
- Start a new Work chat, which clears the old connection state.
- If a task needs to upload a file from your computer: in Chrome's Manage Extensions, open Details and turn on Allow access to file URLs.
Sources
Frequently asked questions
Can ChatGPT read Chrome pages now?
Yes. Since the official extension update on October 15, 2026, ChatGPT reads your open tabs and selected text, and in Work it carries out tasks in them with your permission.
Do I need the ChatGPT desktop app?
Yes, to carry out tasks. You connect the browser from Settings, Computer Use in the desktop app on Mac or Windows, then type @Chrome in a Work chat.
What is the difference between Chat and Work in Chrome?
Chat only reads your tabs and answers about them. Work controls the tabs: it fills forms, sends messages and downloads files.
Does the extension work in browsers other than Chrome?
Yes, in Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi too. Side chat is not available in Opera.
Does ChatGPT use any website without asking?
No. It asks before each new site: once, for this site, for all sites, or decline. Browser history needs your permission every time.
Is the feature available in Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia is on OpenAI's list of supported countries, but the rollout is gradual, so Work or the browser option may appear in your account later.
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