Anthropic is merging its Claude Cowork and Chat experiences into a single conversation, the company announced on Wednesday. The move eliminates the need for users to choose between Chat and Cowork before starting a task. Instead, the AI chatbot can automatically detect the tools it requires to carry out the designated task based on the request. Anthropic said the unified experience can handle both simple questions as well as more complex tasks.
Claude Cowork and Chat Are Now One Experience
Rather than first deciding whether a task belongs in Chat or Cowork, users can describe the outcome they want. In a blog post, Anthropic said that Claude can respond to straightforward questions as usual, while more involved requests can trigger the tools and capabilities previously associated with Cowork.
Citing an example, Anthropic said that users can ask Claude to analyse several interview notes, search the web for information, organise files or turn an analysis into a presentation. Claude can work through multiple steps, search the web, read files, run code and assemble the results without requiring users to manually break the task down.
Meanwhile, tasks that are more complex will continue running in the cloud even after users close their laptop or leave the page. However, this does not include activities that require access to files or apps on a computer. Users can return to the conversation once a cloud-based task is complete and continue refining the result.
The new experience also allows the chatbot to access connected services during tasks. Apps such as Google Drive, Gmail, Microsoft 365, and Slack can be connected to Claude, allowing it to retrieve information while carrying out a request.
Despite the change, Cowork’s more advanced capabilities are being carried over. These include computer use in beta on Pro and Max plans, where Claude can interact with applications by clicking, typing, and navigating the screen. Users can also schedule recurring tasks.
Anthropic says the new experience is rolling out gradually. Users who still see separate “Chat” and “Cowork” options have not received the update yet. Once an account moves to the new experience, the separate Chat and Cowork options cannot be restored. Existing Cowork tasks, projects, connectors, skills, artifacts, and files will carry over, as per the company.
There are, however, some limitations at launch. For instance, GitHub imports and conversation branching are not supported, while Incognito chats will continue to use the previous experience. Search does not currently cover older Cowork tasks, and Dispatch is unavailable to new users.
