Overview
- OpenAI rolled out Computer History for the ChatGPT macOS app in mid-August as an opt-in feature for Pro, Business and Enterprise users and has withheld availability in the EEA, the UK and Switzerland.
- The feature records interaction events such as clicks, keystrokes, keyboard shortcuts and app switches through macOS accessibility APIs and requires the separate Memories setting to be enabled.
- OpenAI says it processes raw event files on its servers to build summaries, deletes those raw event files after 48 hours and writes the resulting memories back to the Mac as plain‑text Markdown files.
- Security researchers and journalists warn the unencrypted local memory files can be read by other programs running as the same macOS user, create a target for infostealers and expand prompt‑injection attack surface, and enterprises are weighing admin controls and data‑residency concerns.
- OpenAI positions Computer History as an early step toward always‑on, context‑rich assistants, and CEO Sam Altman has said a more continuously watching assistant could become practically useful within about six months, a timeline he described as an estimate.