The Tool That Might Change Everything (Plus ChatGPT Has Ads Now)
I’ve been using Claude Code for a while now. Every time I fire it up, I think: this is incredible, but most people will never touch it because terminals are scary.
That changed this week.
Claude Cowork is here
Anthropic launched Cowork on January 12th, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since.
The pitch is simple: Claude Code for the rest of your work. All the power of their coding agent — reading files, editing documents, creating new content, automating tasks — but through the familiar chat interface of the Claude Desktop app.
You point Cowork at a folder. You describe what you need. It does the work.
No terminal. No commands. No technical setup.
Simon Willison called it “a general agent disguised as a developer tool” — and that’s exactly right. The capabilities were always there. Anthropic just built a front door that doesn’t require a CS degree to walk through.
- Expanded to all Pro subscribers ($20/month)
- Currently: macOS only, research preview
Here’s what blows my mind: Anthropic built the entire Cowork feature in roughly a week and a half — using Claude Code itself. That’s the kind of recursive improvement that makes you realize we’re in a different era.
I’ve experimented with Claude Code on enough tasks to know this changes things. Work is about to feel different. And now that barrier to entry just dropped dramatically.
Oh, and ChatGPT has ads now
Almost forgot — OpenAI also announced their [advertising approach] this week.
Free tier users will see sponsored content at the bottom of chats. The twist: you can chat with the ads. Ask questions, get details. It’s an interesting format, even if the whole thing feels like an inevitable step toward the Google-ification of AI.
**The good news:** $20/month subscribers won’t see ads. And there’s a new $8/month “Go” tier for people who want expanded features (reasoning models, image creation, file uploads, memory) without the full price tag.
I get it. Running AI infrastructure is expensive. Ads fund access for people who can’t pay. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little sad to see that clean, ad-free interface change.
## Two different bets
OpenAI is betting on scale and monetization. Anthropic is betting on capability and utility.
Both might work. But only one announcement made me immediately want to build something.
If you’ve been waiting for AI agents to feel usable, Cowork might be your moment. I’ll be experimenting more and sharing what I find.
Until next week,
John