ChatGPT can now read and control your Chrome tabs to fill forms

OpenAI updated its ChatGPT Chrome extension on 15 October to give it two new abilities: reading your open browser tabs and, in one mode, actually clicking and typing inside them. The company described it as "bringing the power of computer use to anyone who uses Chrome."

What happened

ChatGPT now offers two distinct modes inside the Chrome extension, and the difference between them matters.

• Chat mode reads your open tabs. It pulls text from the pages you already have loaded and uses that information to answer your question, but it does not click or type anything.
• Work mode goes further. It acts as an agent, an AI that completes a task with several steps for you, not just one answer. It can click, type and submit inside pages where you are already signed in, letting it send messages, fill out forms, download files and even group your open tabs.

The extension also gained a redesigned sidebar. According to OpenAI, "Your entire ChatGPT history is right there, and you can ask question in Chat or get things done in Work, side by side while you're on a site."

The Chrome Web Store listing describes the product in five words: "Control your browser with ChatGPT."

What it means for your work

OpenAI shared several example prompts that show what this looks like in practice:

• "Compare the three couches I have open by dimensions, material, delivery time, and return policy."
• "Compare these pricing pages against our requirements. Which plan includes everything we need?"
• "Use the details in this event brief to fill out the registration form, and stop before submitting."
• "Put the vendors in these tabs into my comparison sheet, with pricing, key features, and source links."
• "Look at all the tabs I have open and compare the contractor services. Then draft an email to the one that fits my home renovation."
• "Fill out the form I have open in @chrome ahead of seeing my new dentist."

The "stop before submitting" phrasing in one prompt is worth noting. Work mode can submit forms, so you need to tell it explicitly when you want to review before it sends anything.

One point where sources differ: PPC Land reports that OpenAI drew a clear line between Chat (reads only) and Work (controls), while The Verge presents tab control as a general feature without mentioning the mode distinction.

What to do now

1. Go to the Chrome Web Store and install or update the ChatGPT extension. OpenAI says it is available for all ChatGPT plans, but which plans include Work mode tab control has not been confirmed, so check what your plan shows after installing.
2. Open two or three tabs you would normally compare manually, such as supplier pricing pages or event registration forms.
3. Open the ChatGPT sidebar and try a Chat mode question first: ask it to summarise what is across your tabs.
4. If Work mode is available on your plan, try a controlled task such as filling a form, and include the phrase "stop before submitting" so you can review before anything is sent.

The extension is free to download, but pricing for the plans that unlock Work mode tab control is not announced yet.

The most useful habit to build now is adding "stop before submitting" to any Work mode prompt that involves a form or a message.