Reading time: 11 minutes
ChatGPT agent mode is gone, and ChatGPT Work took over its role. Today the agent uses a cloud browser to research, compare and fill in forms on websites, but the person confirms or completes the payment. This guide shows how ChatGPT agent mode worked, what blocks the agent and what a store needs.
In short
- ChatGPT agent mode is gone. So, according to OpenAI, anyone who wants long web tasks uses ChatGPT Work and the cloud browser.
- The agent reads pages, clicks and fills in forms. However, OpenAI warns that not every purchase is supported, and the person confirms or completes the payment.
- A site can block the agent with security measures, because each site decides whether to allow it. A sign-in pauses the task until the person logs in.
- The cloud browser is on paid plans, except Free and Go. Also, OpenAI’s pages on Work do not name Brazil.
Does ChatGPT agent mode still exist?
No. According to the OpenAI Help Center, ChatGPT agent, the official name of agent mode, is no longer available. The page tells people to use ChatGPT Work for long tasks and the cloud browser for browsing. Work arrived in July 2026. So ChatGPT agent mode no longer works.
The name, however, lives on in searches. Type “modo agente chatgpt” into Google in Brazil. The suggestions include “como usar” (how to use), “sumiu” (disappeared), “é pago” (is it paid) and “tem limite” (has a limit). So this guide answers each one.
Before, people picked the mode in the tools menu or typed /agent. Now they open Work in ChatGPT and describe the task. In addition, according to the OpenAI Help Center, the old agent also absorbed Operator. The table compares the two.
| Point | Agent mode (old) | ChatGPT Work (today) |
|---|---|---|
| How to start | Tools menu or /agent | Pick Work on web or mobile |
| Browsing | Virtual browser | Cloud browser |
| Plans | Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu | Browser: paid plans, except Free and Go |
| Limit | 40 messages a month on Plus | Plan allowance, as in Codex |
For the context on Work, search and memory, see the guide on how ChatGPT works.
How does ChatGPT agent mode work today?
Work takes the task in plain language and decides on its own when to open the cloud browser. That browser runs on a separate computer, so it reads pages, clicks buttons and fills in forms on supported sites. The task keeps running if you close your computer. However, it pauses when it needs details, a sign-in or a confirmation.
In practice, ChatGPT agent mode works in five steps, according to the cloud browser guide:
- Describe the outcome: include the site, the relevant details and the constraints.
- Approve access: by default, ChatGPT asks before it opens a new site.
- Sign in when asked: if there is a login, use the secure form and the two-factor code.
- Follow and confirm: progress shows in the chat, along with confirmation requests.
- Check the result: OpenAI says to verify the result and its sources before relying on it.
OpenAI also says that, depending on the request, ChatGPT uses a connected app or plugin, the cloud browser or both. Among the company’s examples, these stand out:
- Quotes: request quotes from businesses.
- Products: compare product availability and local stock.
- Travel: find flights that fit your plans.
- Deliveries: track a package with a connected email and a tracking site.
How does the ChatGPT agent choose sites and stores?
By the request: OpenAI tells Work users to include the site in the task. When no site is given, the company does not publish the criteria the browser uses to pick where to go. So only the criteria for product results in the chat are documented.
For those results, the OpenAI Help Center says ChatGPT considers structured data from first-party and third-party providers, such as price and description. If the person gives a budget, it puts more weight on price. When several stores sell the same item, the ranking considers availability, price, quality and whether the store is the maker or the primary seller. However, these results are not ads.
For example, if a customer asks for running shoes up to R$ 500, price weighs more in the list. In our reading, a store reaches the agent in at least two ways. The customer names it, or it shows up in the product answers the customer brings to the task. A brand that AI does not mention has less chance of making the list.
For the catalog, the feed and structured data, see the guide on GEO for ecommerce. The payment protocols for agents, such as ACP, UCP and AP2, are covered in the agentic commerce guide.
Can the ChatGPT agent complete a purchase on its own?
Not on its own. OpenAI says ChatGPT is designed to ask for confirmation in the chat. That applies before actions that are hard to reverse or create a financial commitment, such as making a payment. Also, the same page warns that the cloud browser cannot complete every task or transaction.
According to OpenAI, support varies by site and action. A site can block automated access, a sign-in or transaction step may be unsupported, or ChatGPT may restrict the action. So you may need to take over or complete the last step.
Two OpenAI pages, however, disagree. The allowlisting page says that, at launch, the browser could not sign in or complete payments. The cloud browser page and the August 2026 release notes, in contrast, mention sign-in and confirmation before payment. OpenAI does not explain the difference. So, when in doubt, treat payment as a step the person completes. In short, ChatGPT agent mode works as a research and form-filling assistant, and the person stays in control of payment.
Brazilian shoppers, by the way, also hesitate. In the PYMNTS Intelligence survey, 28% of 1,046 shoppers would let an agent place orders on its own if the store allowed cancellation within 24 hours. With free, guaranteed returns, it would be 23%. The base is shoppers who bought in a physical store with digital help, and Visa, which backed the study, sells payments. So read the number as a sign of trust, not a sales forecast.
A purchase made inside the ChatGPT chat is not documented for Brazil. So the GEO for ecommerce guide explains what works in the country today.
What blocks the agent on a site: captcha, pop-up or login?
Three things, according to OpenAI: site security measures that restrict agents, the sign-in screen and steps the agent cannot do alone. The pages we read do not mention captcha or pop-ups. So treat those two as a likely risk, but not documented. On a blocked site, ChatGPT agent mode does not work, even if the page opens normally in your browser.
| Block | What OpenAI documents | What the store does |
|---|---|---|
| Site security | The site decides whether to accept agent traffic | Allow the browser on the CDN |
| Sign-in | The agent pauses and asks the person to sign in | Show price and stock without an account |
| Final step | The agent asks the person to take over | Keep the checkout short |
| Captcha and pop-up | Not mentioned (our reading) | Test the flow and remove what covers buttons |
OpenAI explains that the cloud browser signs its requests with Web Bot Auth, an HTTP signature standard. So the site can confirm that the request came from ChatGPT. For this, the page gives allowlisting instructions for Akamai, Cloudflare, HUMAN and Vercel.
At sign-in, ChatGPT pauses, and the person enters credentials in a secure form. According to OpenAI, the username and password stay out of the model’s sight. For Cloudflare, see the guide on blocking AI crawlers on Cloudflare. The fixes for buttons, forms and structured data are in the guide on SEO for AI agents.
Is ChatGPT agent mode paid, and does it work in Brazil?
It is paid, but Brazil is not named. According to OpenAI, Work’s cloud browser is on paid plans, except Free and Go, in supported regions. Brazil is on the list of supported countries for ChatGPT, but no page on Work names it. So that Work works in Brazil is our inference.
The release notes say Work is available in all supported regions. The page on Work says it is on web and mobile for eligible paid plans. It also says Work follows the same usage structure as Codex, with included usage and extra credits. The cloud browser page adds that availability can vary during the gradual rollout and depend on workspace permissions.
Sign-in in Work’s browser, however, has its own rule. According to the release notes from August 2026, authentication is available for Plus and Pro plans. The cloud browser page, in contrast, excludes only Free and Go. The two pages do not match for the other paid plans. So check your plan before counting on tasks on signed-in sites.
The old mode’s limits, 40 messages a month on Plus and 400 on Pro, applied to the retired feature. For the plan price and the included usage, check the ChatGPT plans page.
What about Gemini’s agent mode?
Gemini has a similar feature, Gemini tasks, but with its own rules. According to Google’s help, you must be 18, use a personal account and subscribe to Google AI Pro or Ultra. You also need Keep Activity and Personal Intelligence on.
The feature is not available in the European Economic Area, Nigeria, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, but the page does not name Brazil. To browse, Gemini uses Chrome on your computer or a remote browser. Also, it asks for confirmation on each task that involves browsing.
What should a store prepare for the agent to complete a purchase?
Preparing the store means removing what stops the agent from reading pages and reaching the checkout. To do that, let the browser in, show price and stock as text and keep a short checkout. In Brazil, however, this is still rare: in the PYMNTS survey with Visa, only 15% of 501 merchants had structured product data for agents.
Even so, 74% of merchants expect agents to drive at least 5% of digital sales within two years. Start with this list, in the order the agent meets the store:
- Let the browser in: follow OpenAI’s instructions for your CDN, without opening the door to any bot.
- Review robots.txt: it sets access for AI bots, and the bot-by-bot choice is in the guide on robots.txt for AI. The agent’s browser, however, is allowed through the CDN.
- Write the essentials as text: price, stock, delivery time, shipping and returns must appear on the page.
- Align the data: use the same price and availability on the page, in the feed and in structured data.
- Remove blocks: anti-bot checks before the cart, windows over buttons and a required account to see prices are likely risks, in our reading.
- Measure visits: in PYMNTS, only 21% of merchants can tell when a sale came from an AI platform. The guide on AI traffic in GA4 shows the assistant channel.
Frequently asked questions
You cannot turn on the old ChatGPT agent mode, because it no longer works. For web tasks, open ChatGPT on the web or mobile, pick Work and describe the outcome, with the site and the constraints. According to OpenAI, you do not select the cloud browser: ChatGPT decides when to use it.
No. The cloud browser is separate from yours, so it does not use tabs, history, saved passwords, cookies or sign-ins from your personal browser. It keeps its own sessions, which last for later tasks until they expire. When a site asks for a sign-in, ChatGPT pauses, and you enter it in a secure form. According to OpenAI, the model does not see the username or the password.
By the request signature, because the cloud browser sends a Signature-Agent header with the address https://chatgpt.com. Cloudflare recognizes it by the tag chatgpt-agent, and Akamai by the name ChatGPT Agent. How to see in Cloudflare’s dashboards and logs whether a bot was blocked is in the guide on blocking AI crawlers.
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Main sources
- OpenAI, ChatGPT agent page, retired in favor of ChatGPT Work (2026).
- OpenAI, using cloud browser in ChatGPT (2026).
- OpenAI, ChatGPT Work and Codex (2026).
- OpenAI, allowlisting ChatGPT Work’s cloud browser (2026).
- OpenAI, shopping with ChatGPT search (2026).
- OpenAI, ChatGPT release notes (2026).
- Google, tasks and workflows in Gemini Apps (2026).
- PYMNTS Intelligence, Global Digital Shopping Index: Brazil Playbook, with Visa Acceptance Solutions (2026).
