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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways
- OpenAI launches a Mac-only Codex app arsenic an cause bid center.
- Sandbox controls bounds folder writes and web entree for safer use.
- Switching betwixt IDE, terminal, and app keeps discourse crossed tools.
OpenAI contiguous announced a caller Mac app dedicated to moving with its Codex AI coding agent. This is antithetic from the general-purpose ChatGPT app that OpenAI has been shipping for a while. The caller coding app is intended to beryllium thing of a bid center, not lone for directing coding agents, but besides for managing aggregate coding agents crossed projects and tasks that tally for agelong periods of time.
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In a briefing I attended with OpenAI executives a fewer days earlier the launch, OpenAI cofounder and CEO Sam Altman said, "There's evidently been a immense displacement successful bundle agents implicit the past fewer months arsenic the models person crossed a threshold of existent utility. 5.2, successful particular, is simply a exemplary that galore of america person recovered tin bash highly analyzable things, and we realized we started to consciousness constricted by the interface."
The caller Mac app is intended to assistance mitigate that limitation.
OpenAI described Codex arsenic expanding from single-agent coding operations to being astatine the halfway of multi-agent bundle lifecycles. Rather than pairing with a developer connected a azygous edit, OpenAI sees programmers arsenic coordinating teams of agents crossed each of the design, build, ship, and ongoing attraction stages of work.
(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, ZDNET's genitor company, filed an April 2025 suit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights successful grooming and operating its AI systems.)
Usage maturation and lawsuit uptake
The latest mentation of Codex, GPT-5.2-Codex, lone launched successful mid-December. Yet, according to the company, Codex usage has astir doubled since that time, with much than a cardinal developers utilizing it successful the past month.
I utilized it. In fact, with conscionable the $20-per-month ChatGPT Plus plan, I found a enigma bug. Subsequently, I besides utilized GPT-5.2-Codex connected that aforesaid Plus program to adhd 2 reasonably important features to my information merchandise and vessel a large update.
Also: I utilized GPT-5.2-Codex to find a enigma bug and hosting nightmare - it was beyond fast
In the briefing, Altman stated that GPT-5.2-Codex "is the fastest adopted exemplary that we person ever made." He besides reported connected an utmost level of momentum utilizing this tool, with usage increasing much than 20 times since past August. In summation to autarkic developers similar me, the institution reported that large customers see Cisco, Ramp, Virgin Atlantic, Vanta, Duolingo, and Gap.
Inside the Codex app: parallel agents, skills, and automations
The caller app is designed to tally aggregate tasks successful parallel, and assistance users supervise agents crossed longer end-to-end work. The institution is besides introducing skills, akin to those successful Claude Code. These are meant to let developers to specify repeatable workflows similar fetching logs and fixing tests, on with coding-adjacent tasks similar summarizing threads and completing tickets.
Right now, the app is Mac only. However, I expect that determination volition beryllium a Windows app eventually. OpenAI shipped the ChatGPT app successful Mac-only form, but immoderate months aboriginal launched a Windows version.
In summation to the app itself, OpenAI announced a caller program mode for Codex that allows for a read-only reappraisal (meaning the AI won't muck with your code) and selectable personalities. Personally, I've had conscionable astir capable property from the quality programmers I've managed, truthful I'd similar a nice, personality-free property successful my coding agent.
Recently, OpenAI besides announced that Codex has an IDE hold for usage successful the JetBrains IDEs. Readers whitethorn callback that back successful June I moved disconnected of PhpStorm, my favourite JetBrains improvement environment. I moved to VS Code simply due to the fact that the AI tools were much disposable for that environment. It's bully to spot JetBrains IDE availability for those of america who similar it implicit VS Code.
During the briefing, I asked astir the narration betwixt the assorted coding options present offered with Codex. We tin codification successful our favourite IDE, successful the terminal, and present successful this caller app. I wanted to cognize whether it would beryllium imaginable to get the aforesaid richness of acquisition successful the app that we person successful the IDE, with our full codebase successful beforehand of us.
Sam told me, "I was astonished by this, but I did a reasonably large task successful a fewer days earlier this week and implicit the weekend." He said, "I did not unfastened an IDE during the process. Not a azygous time. I did look astatine immoderate code, but I was not doing it the old-fashioned way."
He further told me, speaking astir this level of coding quality from the AI, "I did not deliberation that was going to beryllium happening by now. I ne'er had that acquisition before."
I was fixed entree to a preview physique of the Mac app. I recovered I was easy capable to enactment successful my codebase. In fact, it knew astir my astir caller enactment successful the IDE. It conscionable automatically picked up from wherever I past near off. It seems that we'll beryllium capable to power betwixt immoderate coding tools we want, and Codex volition support context.
Security exemplary and power connected section machines
Codex does person a unreality tool, which lives successful GitHub. In fact, that's however Codex initially launched. When I first tested it successful that context, I didn't similar it. But erstwhile I started moving with Codex connected my ain machine utilizing the IDE extensions, I recovered that my productivity skyrocketed.
The occupation with moving an AI connected a section computer, particularly with constitute access, is that it tin beryllium a information concern. In the briefing, 1 of OpenAI's Codex developers posed the interest from a plan perspective, saying, "If the cause runs connected the user's computer, however bash we marque that arsenic harmless and unafraid arsenic possible?"
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The cardinal is limiting sandbox entree to lone approved folders. In my case, that's my task folder. The instrumentality besides has permissioned web entree and remembers approvals implicit time. The caller Mac app adds a sandbox mode and lets developers acceptable support levels, including Untrusted, On failure, On request, and Never (meaning the app is ne'er permitted to inquire for elevated permissions).
What OpenAI expects adjacent for coding
The OpenAI improvement squad described its existent coding agents arsenic present reliable capable to fto it propulsion full workflows into the caller app. A fig of the OpenAI developers said that, successful conscionable the past fewer weeks, they've started moving astir wholly successful the Mac app. They haven't adjacent needed to usage their IDEs oregon terminal windows.
OpenAI presently makes Codex disposable with constricted usage successful the $20-per-month ChatGPT Plus plan. It offers overmuch much extended assets availability successful its $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro plan. While I ran into roadblocks gathering caller products (full days of coding) successful the $20-per-month plan, I ne'er ran into a roadblock erstwhile I was utilizing the $200-per-month plan.
But companies person asked OpenAI for thing more. It's not conscionable astir however galore tokens tin beryllium allocated. For those companies, it's astir velocity of computation. You tin hold rather a fewer minutes aft each large AI command. OpenAI said that it's looking astatine creating higher compute-intensive, speed-intensive tiers for companies consenting to wage for axenic speed. These would let for precise agelong discourse coding enactment and see high-speed infrastructure options.
Are you vibe coding?
To promote users to springiness Codex a try, the institution announced, "For a constricted clip we're including Codex with ChatGPT Free and Go, and we're doubling the complaint limits connected Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Edu plans." So consciousness escaped to springiness Codex a try.
Also: 10 ChatGPT Codex secrets I lone learned aft 60 hours of brace programming with it
What astir you? Are you readying to effort the caller Codex app erstwhile it launches, oregon bash you similar sticking with an IDE hold similar VS Code oregon JetBrains? Have you utilized GPT-5.2-Codex (or different coding agents) for existent features and bug hunts yet? Did AI tools really prevention you time, oregon did they make cleanup and tech-debt headaches later? Comment below.
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