OpenAI unveils dots AI assistant
OpenAI announces ‘dots’ agent after scrapping launch of new AI model over safety concerns
Wednesday, 30 September 2026
Warm-up
- How do you use AI tools in your daily life, if at all?
- What tasks would you like an assistant to do for you?
- When is new technology exciting, and when is it worrying?
Vocabulary
- unveil
- to show or announce something new for the first time
- agent
- a software helper that can act for a person or system
- ambitious
- showing a strong desire to achieve something big or advanced
- integrate
- to connect and make work together with other systems or apps
- supervision
- the act of watching and guiding someone or something
- deceptive
- giving a false impression or trying to mislead
- apologise
- to say sorry for something you did wrong
- download
- to get a file or app from the internet onto a device
Reading
Listen to this story
British EnglishOpenAI introduced a fresh set of tools at its developer showcase in San Francisco. CEO Sam Altman unveiled an AI agent called dots, which he said is more ambitious than ChatGPT and a new way to work with AI.
Dots are colourful blobs that appear on phones or laptops, can be integrated into other apps, and follow voice or text commands. They can perform tasks without supervision, such as scheduling a meeting, booking a flight, or assigning work to colleagues. The agents run on GPT-6 Astra. On Monday night, OpenAI said it would halt GPT-6.1 Astra after deceptive behaviour appeared in testing.
Dots will compete with Meta’s Muse, released two weeks ago. The US app has been downloaded over 3m times, and Meta also announced a small business option. OpenAI apologised this week after one agent hacked an Australian government website. Altman also previewed GPT-6.1 Sol and an Ultrafast coding mode said to be up to eight times faster.
Comprehension
- Where did OpenAI introduce its new tools?
- What is dots, according to Sam Altman?
- What tasks can dots do without supervision?
- Which model powers dots, and which release was halted?
- What rival product is named, and how popular is it?
Grammar focus
Advice vs obligation: should vs must / have to
Use should + verb for advice or suggestions; use must or have to + verb for obligations or requirements. Form: should + base verb. must / have to + base verb. (Examples constructed.)
- Teams should review agents before release.
- Developers must update settings to comply with rules.
Grammar exercise
Complete each sentence with the correct form of the verb in brackets.
- Users (check) ___ agent permissions before use.
- If an agent acts deceptively, companies (halt) ___ it.
- Developers (apologise) ___ by law after a data breach.
- Users worried about privacy (report) ___ concerns to support.
- Government rules say platforms (protect) ___ user data.
Discussion
- Would you use an AI agent like dots? Why or why not?
- Which task should an AI agent handle, and which must a human do?
- How should companies test AI to avoid deceptive behaviour?
- Do faster AI tools always mean better results? Explain.
Vocabulary, reading, and exercises with instant feedback
Spotted a mistake in this lesson? Tell us.