ChatGPT’s desktop app has accumulated a confusing set of lanes: a separate Codex area, plus Chat and Work tabs inside ChatGPT itself. That layering can leave users unsure where a project lives or which mode they are using.¹

OpenAI is now moving to simplify that arrangement. In an email to users, the company said it plans to merge Chat and Work, first making the redesigned experience available to a select group for feedback before a broader release.¹ The stated aim is continuity: users could start by exploring an idea, then have ChatGPT carry it forward in the same place.

The combined space is intended to handle more than conversation. OpenAI said users will be able to bring in files and plugins, ask ChatGPT to build a website or presentation, and review and guide its work on the web.¹ That framing positions the change as an attempt to turn scattered modes into a single workflow rather than merely a cosmetic redesign.

But the consolidation has a clear boundary. “Codex will remain a separate experience in the ChatGPT desktop app,” OpenAI said.¹ Thibault Sottiaux, an OpenAI executive, said the company was working on the integration but that it was “not rolling out just yet.”²

The split also matters for usage limits. Under the planned transition, ChatGPT and Codex will draw tokens from one shared allowance. OpenAI said most users should not be affected, though some may have to wait for resets more often depending on their model and usage.¹

OpenAI is not alone in pursuing a cleaner interface: rival Anthropic has also folded Claude’s chat and Cowork functions into one screen. The difference is that OpenAI is simplifying ChatGPT while deliberately leaving Codex outside the new unified workspace.¹