--- title: OpenAI’s always-on agents are free, until one specific... description: OpenAI launched always-on agents called Dots that run free within a user's plan during a launch period, but any task a Dot hands off to Codex or ChatGPT Work... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-always-on-agents-are-free-until-one-specific-thing-happens-bklmrnskx twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: OpenAI’s always-on agents are free, until one specific thing happens | daily.dev og:description: OpenAI launched always-on agents called Dots that run free within a user's plan during a launch period, but any task a Dot hands off to Codex or ChatGPT Work... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-always-on-agents-are-free-until-one-specific-thing-happens-bklmrnskx og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/bkLmrNSKx.png og:image:alt: OpenAI’s always-on agents are free, until one specific thing happens og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # OpenAI’s always-on agents are free, until one specific thing happens **[The New Stack](https://daily.dev/sources/newstack)** · 4 min read · 1 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary OpenAI launched always-on agents called Dots that run free within a user's plan during a launch period, but any task a Dot hands off to Codex or ChatGPT Work still draws from metered usage. OpenAI's head of core products, Thibault Sottiaux, pushed back on a community note questioning the economics, framing included baseline usage as permanent, while OpenAI's own terms say the free allowance only lasts one month after launch, with per-plan terms to follow. The $200 Pro plan's included usage was also halved the same day Dots launched, and a $500 tier was added. Because Dots can autonomously route work to metered products without user review, costs can rise without clear warning. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Does using OpenAI's Dots agent count against my usage limits? A primary Dot running on its own does not count against plan usage limits, at least during the first month after launch, according to OpenAI's published terms. However, if that Dot hands a task off to Codex or ChatGPT Work, that delegated task draws from the usual metered allowance for those products, so routing decisions directly affect what gets billed. _Developers budgeting AI coding costs can follow how usage rules evolve for OpenAI's Dots and Codex on daily.dev._ ### Did OpenAI reduce the usage included in the $200 ChatGPT Pro plan? Yes, OpenAI halved the included usage on its $200 Pro plan the same day it launched the Dots agent feature, and also added a new $500 tier above it. This means the metered allowance that Codex and ChatGPT Work tasks draw from got smaller just as a new feature increased the likelihood of tasks being routed to those metered products. _Teams comparing AI coding plan costs can track pricing shifts like this one on daily.dev._ ### How long will OpenAI's Dots agents be free to use without counting against my plan? OpenAI says Dots usage won't count toward eligible plan allowances for only the first month after launch, after which the company will publish separate per-plan usage terms. This contradicts OpenAI executive Thibault Sottiaux's public statement calling the baseline functionality permanently included, leaving developers unsure what the allowance will look like afterward. _Developers planning agent-based workflows can watch for updates on Dots pricing terms via daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [OpenAI launches dots, always-on AI agents with their own cloud computers](https://daily.dev/posts/openai-launches-dots-always-on-ai-agents-with-their-own-cloud-computers-ci9onynya) · The Next Web · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [OpenAI’s new $100 tier targets developers hitting Codex \(and Claude Code\) limits](https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-new-100-tier-targets-developers-hitting-codex-and-claude-code-limits-a63cw44kk) · The New Stack · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [I cancelled Claude after 6 months of daily use — here's what went wrong](https://daily.dev/posts/i-cancelled-claude-after-6-months-of-daily-use-here-s-what-went-wrong-6kmgnsvbf) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 1 comments --- Tags: [#ai-agents](https://daily.dev/tags/ai-agents), [#openai](https://daily.dev/tags/openai), [#chatgpt](https://daily.dev/tags/chatgpt), [#openai-codex](https://daily.dev/tags/openai-codex) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-always-on-agents-are-free-until-one-specific-thing-happens-bklmrnskx) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"OpenAI’s always-on agents are free, until one specific thing happens","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-always-on-agents-are-free-until-one-specific-thing-happens-bklmrnskx","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-always-on-agents-are-free-until-one-specific-thing-happens-bklmrnskx"},"datePublished":"2026-10-01T22:03:48.395Z","dateModified":"2026-10-02T00:37:45.804Z","description":"OpenAI launched always-on agents called Dots that run free within a user's plan during a launch period, but any task a Dot hands off to Codex or ChatGPT Work...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/2bca1432961380ea2f5ac80e4eb26740?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/2bca1432961380ea2f5ac80e4eb26740?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"The New Stack","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The New Stack","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/newstack","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/newstack"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-always-on-agents-are-free-until-one-specific-thing-happens-bklmrnskx","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":1},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"ai-agents,openai,chatgpt,openai-codex","timeRequired":"PT4M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The New Stack","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/newstack"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"OpenAI’s always-on agents are free, until one specific thing happens"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/openai-s-always-on-agents-are-free-until-one-specific-thing-happens-bklmrnskx#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Does using OpenAI's Dots agent count against my usage limits?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"A primary Dot running on its own does not count against plan usage limits, at least during the first month after launch, according to OpenAI's published terms. 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