← ChatGPT & Codex changelog

ChatGPT — August 21, 2026

This release brings significant platform improvements, focusing on a more intelligent and efficient user experience. Plugin discovery is enhanced with recommendations prioritizing tools people actively use, and responses are smarter with a better understanding of your local time. Web users benefit from faster loading of long conversations and interactive content appearing sooner. Mobile apps on iOS and Android also see usability updates, including easier photo attachment, clearer connection statuses, full-width images, and extended chat history in the sidebar. These updates benefit all users seeking more relevant information and smoother interactions.

Improved

  • Improved plugin discovery on web and mobile
  • Faster long conversations on the web

Changed

  • Updated plugin recommendations make it easier to find tools people continue to use.
  • Find more useful plugins. Rankings now prioritize plugins people keep using after installation, helping relevant options surface across ChatGPT on web and mobile.
  • Plugin availability depends on your plan, region, and workspace settings. Desktop is not included in this update.
  • Learn more about plugins in ChatGPT and Codex.
  • More time-aware answers
  • ChatGPT now has a better sense of your local time during a conversation.
  • Get answers that fit your time of day. ChatGPT can better account for your local time when responding to time-sensitive questions.
  • Long conversations now load more efficiently in ChatGPT on the web.
  • Open longer chats without the wait. ChatGPT loads messages in smaller sections instead of retrieving the entire conversation at once.
  • Interactive content appears sooner on the web
  • Interactive content generated by ChatGPT can now begin appearing while it is still being created.
  • See interactive content sooner. Interactive experiences now appear progressively in the conversation instead of waiting until the full experience is ready.
  • Updates to ChatGPT on iOS
  • Recent photos are easier to reach, and connection-status messages are clearer.
  • Attach recent photos faster. Press and hold the + button to open your recent photos, then choose one to add to your conversation.
  • See clearer connection updates. ChatGPT now tells you when it is waiting for an internet connection.
  • Available in the ChatGPT app for iOS. Access to recent photos requires permission to access your photos.
  • Updates to ChatGPT on Android
  • Generated images are easier to view, and your recent conversations are easier to browse.
  • See generated images at full width. Images you create in ChatGPT now fill the width of the conversation.
  • Keep recent chats easier to browse. Your sidebar now shows up to eight recent conversations.
  • Available in the ChatGPT app for Android, version 1.2026.216 or later.