ChatGPT can now read your Apple Messages — and send them for you
A new plug-in connects the assistant on the Mac to iMessage, SMS and RCS. The setting that matters most is the one you probably should not touch.
Illustration · AI-generated (AI IN LIFE)
At a glance
- Launched 20 August 2026
- Access to iMessage, SMS and RCS: read, search, draft, delete, send
- Runs inside Codex and ChatGPT Work, not in ordinary ChatGPT chats
- Apple silicon build of the Mac app only; Intel Macs are not supported
- Default requires approval of content and recipients — optional standing approval removes that check
On 20 August, OpenAI released a plug-in connecting ChatGPT to Apple Messages. On the Mac, the assistant can read and search iMessage, SMS and RCS conversations, sort and analyse messages, draft replies, delete messages, and send them through the Messages app itself.
The feature does not run in the ordinary ChatGPT chat window but inside Codex and ChatGPT Work. It is available on all plans, but only in the Apple silicon build of the desktop app — Macs with Intel processors are excluded.
Out of the box, control stays with the user: ChatGPT only sends a message once the content and the recipients have been approved. Right beside that, however, sits a switch for standing approval — and OpenAI's own documentation warns explicitly that enabling it removes the final chance to review a message before it goes out.
On the data question, OpenAI told Bloomberg that the plug-in runs locally on the user's machine and does not build an index of all their messages. That limits the scope, but it does not change the fact that an assistant now has access to one of the most private datasets in a household: the complete message history.
In practice, the trade-off is cleanly drawn. Letting the assistant sort messages and draft replies buys time at manageable risk. Switching on standing approval delegates the decision about what goes out to other people in your name.
FAQ
Will ChatGPT send messages without my involvement?
Not by default — content and recipients must be approved. Turning on standing approval deliberately gives up that final check.
Are my messages uploaded?
OpenAI states the plug-in runs locally on the machine and does not create an index of all messages.
Does this work on any Mac?
No. The feature is limited to the Apple silicon build of the desktop app; Intel-based Macs are not supported.
